It doesn’t matter where he shows up or what genre the project occupies, Danny McBride can largely be relied on to play variations on the same archetypal character. And as much as it would be a refreshing change to see him try something different for once, you can’t deny that he’s very good at what he does.
His best work has arguably come on the small screen in Eastbound & Down, Vice Principals and The Righteous Gemstones, but he’s also lent solid support in hit comedies like Superbad, Tropic Thunder, Pineapple Express, Due Date, This is the End and more, while he showed up in Ridley Scott’s sci-fi sequel Alien: Covenant as well.
McBride has diversified in recent times by spearheading the acclaimed reinvention of the Halloween franchise, but even when you drop him in the middle of a swords and sorcery epic influenced by 1980s classics Krull, Conan the Barbarian and Labyrinth, he’s still essentially playing an extension of the same onscreen persona.
Your Highness was a high concept comedic romp where the execution didn’t match the imagination on display. An R-rated fantasy stoner comedy with McBride, James Franco, Natalie Portman, Zooey Deschanel and others being directed by David Gordon Green should have turned out much better than it did, with the humor frequently aiming for the easiest targets instead of maximizing just how insane the premise was on paper.
The film wound up disappointing critics and flopping at the box office, thanks to earning about $28 million of the $50 million budget back in theaters, but Your Highness has remained in the Netflix Top 10 most-watched movies list for roughly a week now after being added to the library on May 1st, which is an impressive feat.
Published: May 8, 2021 12:10 pm