Will Arnett plays a divorcee who turns to comedy

Filming has wrapped on Bradley Cooper‘s next film, about a newly divorced man who develops a love for stand-up comedy.

Will Arnett plays the central character, Alex, in the film with Cooper – who also directs – as his best friend. The pair have been long-term pals in real life too, with Cooper crediting the Bojack Horseman star Cooper with helping him address his substance abuse and seek therapy.

Laura Dern plays Alex’s ex-wife Tess ahead of a star-studded cast that also includes Ciarán Hinds, former NFL star Peyton Manning and Will and Grace’s Sean Hayes along with his husband, Scott Icenogle.

A number of comics also have roles including Amy Sedaris, James Tom and UK-based Chloe Radcliffe, whose one-woman show Cheat plays London’s Soho Theatre next month.

Maestro star Cooper was seen shooting outside the Comedy Cellar in New York earlier this month wielding a camera to shoot some of the secondary, B-roll footage.

He said at the time: I just joined the union. I'll operate the camera, which I’m very excited about because we did some stuff. We went down to Chinatown and yeah, it’s been amazing. We start in two weeks, so it’s kind of crazy.'

The film was first announced in 2023, but production was delayed due to the Writer’s Guild of America strike.

Published: 28 Apr 2025