Jesse Eisenberg's The Debut premiered at Telluride last weekend and is now screening at TIFF, arriving as one of the fall season's clearest Oscar entries. A24 has set December for release.
Moore plays Mona Friedman, a New Jersey homemaker who auditions for a community theater musical called "Nosy Neighbors" after decades away from performing. When the original lead steps aside, Mona takes the role and begins to change. Paul Giamatti is Jerry, the director who treats community theater as the highest possible stakes. The specificity is Eisenberg's: he wrote the script, composed the songs, and drew from his own history. "It is autobiographical," he said at Telluride. "I did community theater, and the people there made me feel so very special."
Hamilton choreographer Andy Blankenbuehler staged the musical numbers. Emile Mosseri composed the score. Bernadette Peters co-stars.
Giamatti, reflecting on working with Moore, was direct: "The most entertaining thing ever was watching Moore pretend to be a bad actress."
Moore, a five-time Oscar nominee who won for Still Alice in 2015, arrives in awards season with a role that critics at Telluride placed at the front of the Best Actress field. Giamatti draws attention in the supporting category. The film closes the BFI London Film Festival in October before its wide release.
The Debut is Eisenberg's third feature as director. December will say whether its specific, slightly eccentric register translates to broad Academy support.
