Back in 2010, Joseph Gordon-Levitt was in a professional rut. “I wanted to be creative, and no one was letting me,” he said of that time. “[So I said] OK, I have to figure out something to do on my own.” That something turned out to be HitRecord, a multimedia platform for original and collaborative content. Although it didn’t produce many memorable projects, launching the service managed to give Gordon-Levitt some career momentum. Starring roles in “50/50,” “Premium Rush,” and “Looper” followed, plus his own blossoming as a producer and filmmaker. All in all, it seemed as though the actor once known as the runt from “3rd Rock from the Sun” had left television long behind.
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Cue the slow death of moviegoing, the rapid ascent of Netflix and other streaming competitors, the advent of peak TV, and now the arrival of “Mr. Corman,” a new original series from Apple TV+ with Gordon-Levitt’s fingerprints all over it. Besides starring in the title role, he also wrote and directed the pilot himself. This is Gordon-Levitt’s first major project as a writer-director since 2013’s “Don Jon,” which did decent business and garnered favorable reviews.
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The series was co-produced with A24, the indie tastemaker responsible for zeitgeisty films like “Lady Bird” and “Uncut Gems.” While less commonly associated with television, the company also co-produced critical favorites “Ramy” and “Euphoria.” “Mr. Corman” appears to fit seamlessly with their brand of auteur-driven, millennial-focused storytelling.
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Here’s the official synopsis:
“‘Mr. Corman’ follows the days and nights of Josh Corman, played by Gordon-Levitt, an artist at heart but not by trade. A career in music hasn’t panned out, and he teaches fifth grade at a public school in the San Fernando Valley. His ex-fiancé Megan has moved out, and his high school buddy Victor has moved in. He knows he has a lot to be thankful for but finds himself struggling nevertheless through anxiety, loneliness, and a sinking suspicion that he sucks as a person. Darkly funny, oddly beautiful, and deeply heartfelt, this relatable dramedy speaks for our contemporary generation of 30-somethings – rich with good intentions, poor with student loans, and yearning to become real grown-ups; sometime before they die.”
Gordon-Levitt’s co-stars include Arturo Castro (“Narcos”), Debra Winger (“Terms of Endearment”), Juno Temple (“Ted Lasso”), and Bobby Hall, a.k.a. Logic, the popular rapper making his screen debut. Bruce Eric Kaplan, who contributed to “Seinfeld,” “Six Feet Under,” and “Girls,” will serve as one of Gordon-Levitt’s co-executive producers. The first two half-hour episodes are set to debut August 6.
