Multi-hyphenate comedian Bo Burnham is an interesting phenomenon, as someone who’s probably pretty rich but still a relative unknown to the general public. Starting out as a YouTube comedian in 2006 where he performed music, sang, rapped, and meshed it all with his comedic sensibilities, he seemed on the verge of a mainstream breakthrough for some time (his YouTube videos have apparently 214 million views as of 2017). He’s released several comedy albums for Comedy Central Records, had his own short-lived MTV show and in 2008, Judd Apatow was convinced enough of his own talents that he signed a deal with Universal to write and possibly star in an anti-“High School Musical”-esque comedy. The movie never came to fruition, but that hasn’t stopped Burnham whose had three comedy special air and one of the exclusively for Netflix.
READ MORE: Bo Burnham’s ‘Eighth Grade’ Is A Millennial ‘Welcome To The Dollhouse’ [Sundance Review]
But his filmography is tiny and perhaps he’s either best known for the “Yo Teach!” viral marketing for Apatow’s “Funny People” (but barely in the movie) and a small supporting role as the dorky white comedian in “The Big Sick.”
Perhaps sick of trying to break through as a lead comedy star, Burnham has made his way into movies on his own terms with his directorial debut, “Eighth Grade” which premiered to great accolades at Sundance earlier this year and then was swiftly picked up by A24. Also written by Burnham, “Eighth Grade” follows an eighth-grader (Elsie Fisher) who struggles to finish her last week of classes before embarking on high school.
Here’s the official synopsis:
“Thirteen-year-old Kayla endures the tidal wave of contemporary suburban adolescence as she makes her way through the last week of middle school—the end of her thus far disastrous eighth-grade year—before she begins high school.”
Co-starring Josh Hamilton and Emily Robinson, the Sundance indie’s first trailer has now arrived and you’ll see what A24 has in store for audiences later this summer as counterprogramming in the middle of blockbuster season. “Eighth Grade” graduates into theaters on July 13. Watch the trailer and let us know what you think.