Editorials > Today's Filmwad Rant: Dear Judd Apatow--Why No Romany Malco Movie?

Let me state from the top that I'm a huge Apatow fan. I'm sure most of you reading this are as well, but there ARE some haters…I just want you to know I aint one of them.

Now, let's go back…back to the unpredictable summer of 2005. "Wedding Crashers" had just rocked the nation and no one thought they could see a funnier movie that summer. Well, "no one" was wrong…wait, that sentence makes no sense. Uhm…everyone was wrong?

Anyways…the shock of the summer was the release of "The 40-Year-Old Virgin." Judging from the promotional poster and trailer that had been going around, the film could either be amazing…or terrible. And truth be told, it was simply amazing.

What made it amazing? Well, the writing was fresh as could be. It blew the already very funny "Wedding Crashers" out of the water. Steve Carrell of COURSE was brilliant in his role, giving an absolutely classic, nuanced performance.

And I can't forget the already much-ballyhooed (and now already famous in their own right) supporting cast, the so-called "Back Pack" which contained Apatow regulars Seth Rogen, Jonah Hill and Paul Rudd. And they all went on to star in and co-write and co-produce other Apatow movies and live happily ever after! The end…

WAIT! Wasn't there…that…black guy? Wait, yes, there was this insanely hilarious black dude in "The 40-Year-Old Virgin." His name is…Romany Malco, yeh, that's it. What ever happened to him?

Well, in the grand scheme of things, he's gone on to a great starring role in the Showtime hit "Weeds" and has shot a few supporting roles for upcoming comedy movies. But in the universe of Apatow…he's simply disappeared.

Ah, I see, that sucks. Happens though, just the luck of the draw. Or does it?

Judd Apatow is famous for developing projects for all of his actors. He took Seth Rogen from a bit player in "Freaks and Geeks" to the unlikeliest writer/producer/star (see "Knocked Up," "Superbad," "The Pineapple Express," "Drillbit Taylor" etc etc for examples). He's doing the same for Jonah Hill, who started out with a walk on role in "Virgin" which was parlayed into a bigger role in "Knocked Up," a starring role in "Superbad" and now he's got two scripts he's written being developed by Apatow himself.

Apatow doesn't just do this for his major players…he's just wrapped up production on "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," which was written by and stars the marginally funny Apatow player Jason Segel. Apatow is also in development mode on David Krumholtz' "Attornyes at Raw" (we think…they removed its IMDB entry, along with the Harold Ramis/Apatow "Year One," over the weekend). Krumholtz is funny but has only somewhat been involved in Apatow productions (a few episodes of "Freaks and Geeks," a minor, minor role in "Superbad" and that's about it).

So what the fuck?! What about Romany Malco? This motherfucker is FUNNY as hell. He stole the show several times in "Virgin," be it from his scenes in the electronics store or his MC Hammer-inspired dancing during the credits sequence (which was befitting for Malco since he played Hammer in a VH1 made for TV movie).

You couldn't possibly say he can't do a project with Apatow because of his "Weeds" schedule, because Carrell is in "The Office," which shoots more episodes. And he's already developing his second Apatow film (and has also steadily starred in at least one comedy per summer).

Now I don't know if this is a case of Apatow just being blind here…for all we know, there was trouble between the two of them…maybe Malco's just not that interested in working with Apatow again. Who the hell knows.

What I do know is that the two of them NEED to work together again…there was definite director/actor chemistry going on there. Doing a film with a black lead character is also unfamiliar ground for Apatow…something that could keep his formula from getting stale.

Guys, for the sake of comedy fans everywhere, work together again already. Thanks.