While we await Mike Judge’s next film—which may or may never happen—he has lined up a new project at Apple TV+ and managed to secure two major stars as his leads.
Benicio Del Toro, fresh off “One Battle After Another,” is making his way to television, having been cast as the lead in Judge’s upcoming Apple TV+ comedy series “Protective Custody.” Ben Stiller will co-star alongside Del Toro, marking a reunion of sorts after the two previously teamed up on the Showtime limited series “Escape at Dannemora.”
Judge, Steve Hely, and Dave King are writing “Protective Custody,” which follows a disgraced financier (Stiller) accused of massive fraud who is placed in protective custody. As he awaits trial, he must navigate prison politics, salvage his reputation, and confront the consequences of his actions.
There’s no word yet on which role Del Toro will play. Judge will also direct the series.
The last we heard, Judge’s long-gestating feature project, “Automatic Trucking,” was expected to move forward with Jack Quaid in the lead role. Since then? Radio silence. Hopefully, it hasn’t been scrapped. The script is hilarious and deserves to be made into a feature.
Judge hasn’t directed a feature since 2009’s “Extract,” so it’s high time for a new one. That said, we’ll gladly take the Stiller-Del Toro series in the meantime.
Judge is, of course, the creator behind “Beavis and Butt-Head,” “King of the Hill,” and “Silicon Valley.” He also wrote and directed “Beavis and Butt-Head Do America,” “Office Space,” “Idiocracy,” and “Extract.” He remains one of comedy’s great auteurs, though it’s a shame that so many of his film projects have fallen by the wayside over the 17 years since his last feature.
For Schrader, AI solves the curious practical filmmaking problem he had. How about just creating Black people? No casting calls, no agents, no actors turning down the roles.