Nothing about this sounds like a safe bet—and that’s exactly why it might work.
Bradley Cooper, who last had us weeping through Maestro and swooning through A Star is Born, is shifting gears with his third directorial effort, Is This Thing On? The film just wrapped, and whispers from inside Searchlight Pictures say they’re “really liking what they’ve seen so far.” Translation: it’s gunning for a fall festival blitz, with TIFF and Telluride circled in red Sharpie.
But here’s the kicker—this doesn’t sound like the next awards-bait epic. It sounds… oddly intimate.
Co-written with longtime friend Will Arnett (yes, BoJack himself) and British writer Mark Chappell (Flaked), the film trades big biopics for something messier and more human: the awkward unraveling of a marriage. According to a December production listing, it’s about Alex and Tess—exes navigating post-divorce life with two kids, shared friends, and the kind of emotional whiplash that only comes from loving someone you now need space from.
Think Marriage Story meets High Fidelity—with more football cameos.
Here’s what makes this interesting:
Cooper isn’t just acting and directing. He’s writing about himself. Okay, not literally—but let’s connect a few dots. After portraying Leonard Bernstein and navigating A-list superstardom, he’s suddenly drawn to a story about a man untangling his identity after a major personal shift.
That’s no coincidence.
Hollywood’s full of actors-turned-directors who got raw and real in their third acts. Ben Affleck gave us Argo after The Town. Greta Gerwig went from Lady Bird to Little Women before busting the genre open with Barbie. Cooper? He seems to be entering his “let’s-stop-pretending” phase. It’s less about the myth, more about the mess. And that’s compelling.
Also compelling? This cast.
Laura Dern, who basically invented the phrase “emotionally available,” joins Cooper alongside Amy Sedaris, Ciarán Hinds, Sean Hayes, and Grammy-winner Andra Day. Oh—and Peyton Manning, because apparently this is a universe where quarterbacks also do ensemble comedy-dramas now.
So, what’s really going on here?
Searchlight’s support suggests confidence. But this isn’t just an Oscar strategy—it’s a career recalibration. Is This Thing On? could be Cooper’s attempt to reclaim authenticity, not acclaim. In a decade where personal storytelling (Aftersun, The Banshees of Inisherin) keeps punching through the noise, this could be his most subversive move yet:
Make something small.
Forget prestige. Forget legacy. Just tell the truth, as best you can. That’s how you win hearts.
And if this lands at TIFF or Telluride with the right word of mouth? It might just win statues too.
Would you risk it all for a story this small?
Tell us what you think. Is Cooper leveling up—or playing it too safe? Comment below.
