In 2023, Zac Efron made a glorious return to the film industry with his critically acclaimed role in “The Iron Claw.” This revival had everybody ecstatic to see him once again on the big screen. Now, Efron is continuing his career comeback with his new role in Amazon Prime Video’s comedy film “Ricky Stanicky.” This marks another resurgence for Efron, as he hasn’t done a comedic role since 2017.
To celebrate Efron’s return to the beloved genre, we’ve gathered all the information viewers are eager to know about the film. Here is everything there is to know about “Ricky Stanicky:”
1. What is “Ricky Stanicky” about?
The film follows three childhood best friends who invent an imaginary friend named Ricky Stanicky to get them out of trouble for a prank gone wrong. Twenty years later, the friend group still uses the imaginary friend as an excuse for their immature behavior. However, when the gang heads to Atlantic City, their spouses and partners begin to get suspicious and demand to finally meet the fabled Mr. Stanicky. To cover their lies, the guilty trio decides to hire a washed-up actor and raunchy celebrity impersonator, “Rock Hard” Rod (John Cena), to bring the infamous Ricky Stanicky to life.
2. Who comprises the “Ricky Stanicky” cast?
“Ricky Stanicky” has a stacked cast list as there are many star-studded appearances in this film. The main cast consists of Zac Efron, “The Blackening” star Jermaine Fowler and Andrew Santino, well known for his role in “Dave”, as the three childhood best friends. Appearing alongside Efron, Fowler and Santino will be John Cena, who will play the imagined Ricky Stanicky character. Other star appearances you can expect to see include William H. Macy, well known for his performance in “Shameless” and “Nancy Drew” star Anja Savcic.
3. Who will be directing “Ricky Stanicky?”
Back in Sept. 2022, American filmmaker Peter Farrelly revealed in an interview with Deadline that he will be directing “Ricky Stanicky.” Like Efron, this film marks Farrelly’s return to the comedy genre as he is well-known for his work in comedic films like “Dumb and Dumber” and “There’s Something About Mary.”
“’Ricky Stanicky’, I think, is just a hilarious movie, and it’s a great message, not just a bunch of hard-R (comedy) laughs,” Farrelly told Deadline.
4. Is there an official trailer?
Yes! On Jan. 26, Prime Videos released the movie’s official trailer, which set the tone for this chaotic yet exciting comedy film.
The trailer opens with the trio trying to come up with a medical emergency for Ricky as a way to go on a trip to Atlantic City. But their lie goes wrong when Santino’s character is unreachable while his wife gives birth. This forces the group to have to prove that Ricky Stanicky exists. However, their plan backfires as their Ricky hire starts to take his role too seriously and believes he is Ricky.
Based on the trailer, the movie seems like it will take viewers on a wild ride with the characters’ shenanigans as it teased many chaotic sequences and laugh-out-loud moments. As a result, the film seems like a promising bro-comedy film.
5. When is the release date?
“Ricky Stanicky” will be released on March 7 on Amazon Prime Video. This is good news as viewers only have to wait one month before its debut. In the meantime, viewers can watch Zac Efron’s previous comedy films “Baywatch” and “Neighbor” on Amazon Prime and Netflix.