Judd Apatow, the producer behind comedy classics such as “The 40-Year-Old Virgin,” “Bridesmaids” and “Knocked Up,” will be in Atlanta to raise money for the American Red Cross of Georgia to help victims of Hurricane Helene on Nov. 3 at the Variety Playhouse.
He will host while bringing New York comic Ricky Velez and Atlanta’s own Jeff Foxworthy to crack jokes.
For several years, Apatow has hosted comparable fundraisers for different charities in Los Angeles with past participants such as Kumail Nanjiani, Michael McKean, Christopher Guest, Gary Gulman, Maria Bamford and Patton Oswalt. He recently held a fundraiser in Los Angeles for Hurricane Milton victims in Florida.
“This is the first time I’m taking it on the road,” Apatow told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Tickets are on sale at axs.com for $25 to $55. “It’s a fun opportunity to get to work with a wide variety of different people I like or look up to.”
Apatow worked with Velez in the 2020 Pete Davidson comedy “The King of Staten Island” and produced Velez’s 2021 HBO stand-up special. “He’s a great friend and just ridiculously hilarious,” he said.
And Apatow said he has known Foxworthy going back to the mid-1980s when they both worked the Comedy & Magic Club in Hermosa, California. “He’s a legend,” he said. “He’s always been the funniest and nicest man I know. As soon as he heard about my show, he contacted me and said he’d love to be a part of it.”
Apatow is familiar with Atlanta because he shot “Anchorman 2″ in Atlanta 11 years ago and his wife, Leslie Mann, acted in the comedy “The Change-Up,” which was produced in Atlanta in 2011.
He is well aware that studios are no longer spending money on theatrical mid-budget comedies anymore, but he hasn’t given up hope.
“I don’t think it’s a rejection from the audience,” he said. “Studios just haven’t made the investment. Comedy is still important. Look at ‘Barbie’ and ‘Deadpool & Wolverine.’ They’re comedy based. I think if someone made ‘The Hangover’ today, it’d still be as big as it was then.”
He thinks the demise of the DVD has hurt comedies. “That’s where a lot of money was generated,” he said.
Apatow recently watched his 2005 hit “The 40-Year-Old Virgin” for the first time to remaster it in preparation for its 20th anniversary. “I forgot almost all of it,” he said. “It was a fresh experience. I’d be lying if I didn’t say I laughed more than I expected.”
There were ample jokes about Michael McDonald, whose live concert DVD played constantly at the Smart Tech store Steve Carell’s character worked at. McDonald’s career has been on an upswing since then courtesy of the rise of yacht rock.
“He thought the movie was funny,” Apatow said.
Apatow’s current project is a two-part docuseries about 98-year-old Mel Brooks, the legendary comic who was active at the beginning of television in 1950 on Sid Caesar’s “Your Show of Shows” and created a raft of legendary films such as “Blazing Saddles” and “Young Frankenstein.”
“He (is) still sharp as a tack,” Apatow said. “There aren’t many people who can talk about the last 100 years with you and give you personal perspective. He’s the reason many of us got into comedy. His memory is better than mine!”
And films like “Blazing Saddles” and “Young Frankenstein” still hold up five decades later, he said. “Not many people are really looking to annihilate you with laughter. He is the best.”
Apatow is also well aware that artificial intelligence is changing Hollywood and tries not to be apocalyptic about it.
“I don’t want to become this grumpy older guy who’s like, ‘All I need is my vinyl!’ I hope AI cures all my diseases and I hope robots don’t try to murder me.”
IF YOU GO
Judd Apatow with Ricky Velez and Jeff Foxworthy fundraiser for American Red Cross of Georgia
7 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 3. $25-$55. Variety Playhouse, 1099 Euclid Ave. NE, Atlanta. axs.com.
