‘Club Kid’ Trailer: Jordan Firstman’s Cannes Breakout is “A24 Meets Big Daddy”

Here’s our first trailer for Jordan Firstman’s “Club Kid,” which currently sits at 100% on Rotten Tomatoes and 85 on Metacritic.

After its rapturous reception at Cannes, Jordan Firstman’s “Club Kid” sparked an intense eight-figure bidding war among multiple studios, including Mubi, A24, Netflix, and Searchlight.

A24 finally won the rights to “Club Kid” in a deal said to be worth $17M. Given that A24’s Oscar slate currently includes “The Debut” and “The Invite,” maybe they can sneak this one in as well, as it’s bound to win over fall festival crowds with its old-fashioned, crowd-pleasing story.

It’s actually quite apropos that the film landed at A24, given that after it screened, “Club Kid” was being described by quite a few people as “A24 meets Big Daddy.” Compared to the 1999 Adam Sandler-starring movie, which had a similar premise of an irresponsible adult unexpectedly becoming responsible for a child, “Club Kid” brings a distinctly more indie sensibility to the setup.

Set against New York’s queer nightlife scene, this comedy-drama follows Peter, played by Firstman, a reckless party promoter whose carefree existence is upended when he discovers he has a 10-year-old son from a long-forgotten hookup. No doubt about it, the boy is, in fact, Peter’s child—the result of one wild night and the first and only time Peter ever slept with a woman.

The film’s mix of raunchy humor, sincerity, and authentic club-scene energy—along with supporting turns from Cara Delevingne and Diego Calva—makes it very accessible, and I can definitely see why it sparked so much studio interest. It is both a chaotic and heartfelt film, mostly avoiding cliché despite its familiar “man-child grows up” premise.

“Club Kid,” Firstman’s directorial debut, screened in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard sidebar section and is now headed to the fall festivals, where it will be shown at Telluride, TIFF, and NYFF, along with a handful of regional fests. The film finally releases in theaters on November 6. Watch the trailer below.