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Ricky Stanicky is a 2024 American comedy film co-written and directed by Peter Farrelly. The film stars Zac Efron, Jermaine Fowler, Andrew Santino, Lex Scott Davis, Anja Savcic, Jeff Ross, William H. Macy, and John Cena. The story centers on a group of friends who create a fake persona named Ricky Stanicky as a scapegoat for their shenanigans and are eventually forced to hire an actor to pose as Ricky when their families question his existence.
| Ricky Stanicky | |
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 Release poster | |
| Directed by | Peter Farrelly |
| Screenplay by |
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| Story by |
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| Produced by |
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| Starring | |
| Cinematography | John Brawley |
| Edited by | Patrick J. Don Vito |
| Music by | Dave Palmer |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by | Amazon MGM Studios |
Release date |
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Running time | 114 minutes[1] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $49.7 million[2] |
Ricky Stanicky was released in the United States by Amazon MGM Studios via its streaming service Prime Video on March 7, 2024. It received mixed reviews from critics.
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Childhood friends Dean, Wes, and JT prank a neighbor on Halloween Night by lighting a bag of dog faeces on fire and leaving it on their doorstep. Their nearby scarecrow catches fire. Unable to extinguish it, Dean writes "Ricky Stanicky" on one of their costume pieces, leading police to believe an out-of-town kid, was responsible for the prank. Twenty years later, the trio continually use Ricky Stanicky as their excuse to forego obligations and avoid trouble.
JT and his wife Susan are preparing a baby shower, and Dean and his girlfriend Erin have been helping. "Ricky" (who is really Wes) calls Dean. Supposedly his testicular cancer is back, and he is alone in Albany. The women encourage Dean and JT to go see him. however, they actually go see Marc Rebillet in Atlantic City. On their flight, the trio turn off their phones, post something as "Ricky", and write in their Ricky Stanicky Bible.
While in Atlantic City, they meet actor and impersonator Rock-Hard Rod, who sings sex-based parodies of popular songs. Shortly after, Dean learns that Susan went into labor six weeks early, forcing them to hurry back. At the hospital, the trio learn they missed Whitaker's birth. JT's mother-in-law Leona, believes Ricky Stanicky is not real. Wes almost tells everyone the truth, but Dean insists Ricky lied to celebrate being five years cancer-free. Leona tells the trio that Ricky is invited to Whitaker's Bris. While Wes feels they must come clean, Dean hires Rod to play Ricky Stanicky.
At the Bris, Rod impresses everyone with his personality and knowledge as "Ricky", including Leona, Erin's cousin Carly, and Ted Summerhayes (Dean and JT's boss). When Rod makes the trio believe he personally knows Carly's ex, Gary Polisner, they decide to drug him with ketamine, but the Rabbi takes it instead. During the circumcision, the drug kicks in, leaving Whitaker half-circumcised. Ricky completes the ritual using Summerhayes' cigar cutter, to everyone's relief.
The next day, Summerhayes reveals he has hired Ricky Stanicky to prepare the World River merger, a major San Francisco company. Erin also drops by, saying she scored a reporting gig for a local news channel's "Hero of the Week" segment, focusing on Ricky and his alleged humanitarian efforts.
Summerhayes starts a charity organization per Ricky's suggestion and makes Ricky the head of the World River merger, replacing Dean. Rod asks Dean for advice, who angrily reminds him that he is Rod, not Ricky. Rod has legally changed his name to Richard Barbara Stanicky, thankful for being given a new life. Dean is depressed, as he will lose his job and relationship with Erin once Ricky is shown to be a fraud.
The next day, at a party between Summerhayes' company and World River, they intend to watch the premiere of Ricky's "Hero of the Week" segment. Erin tells Dean she knows Ricky Stanicky is Rock-Hard Rod. Summerhayes introduces Dean, who confesses to everyone that Ricky Stanicky is fake, apologizing and promptly leaving the party.
The "Hero of the Week" story begins playing, and Rod tells the reporter how he met Dean, and that the Ricky Stanicky Bible made him want to change his life. As Summerhayes is about to fire Dean, the World River executives approach him and enthusiastically approve of his choice to hire Ricky, excited for a merger. Summerhayes asks Dean his thoughts, and they agree.
Learning the truth about Ricky, Susan makes JT camp in the backyard for six months as punishment. Erin reveals to Dean that she is pursuing the story about Rod becoming Ricky, while he asks her to forgive him. Erin states it will be difficult, but hearing Ricky's recording of Dean talking about his love and appreciation for her helps. At the party, Ricky tells the trio that Carly is his fiancée, and that they will all be cleaning the environment on the weekend.
During the credits, videos and pictures are shown with Ricky and others cleaning, Carly donating her hair to children, Wes becoming a published author, JT brushing his teeth outside near his porta-potty while Susan and Whitaker watch, everyone posing at Dean and Erin's wedding, and a viral TikTok remix of Summerhayes' comedic jerking motions at various conferences.
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- Zac Efron as Dean
- Jermaine Fowler as Wes
- Andrew Santino as JT
- Lex Scott Davis as Erin
- Anja Savcic as Susan
- Jeff Ross as Rabbi Greenberg
- William H. Macy as Summerhayes
- John Cena as Rod (Ricky Stanicky)
- Nathan Jones as Big Ben
- Debra Lawrance as Mrs. Levine
- Heather Mitchell as Leona
- Daniel Monks as Keith
- Jane Badler as Miriam Summerhayes
- Marta Kaczmarek as Mimi Jacobs
- Ryan Shelton as Phillip
- Jim Knobeloch as Billings
- Zen Gesner as a World River executive
Additionally, Marc Rebillet and Stan Grant portray themselves.
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Development
In May 2010, it was reported that James Franco was attached to play the title role in Ricky Stanicky, with the screenplay written by David Occhino and Jason Decker, Jeffrey Bushell, and Summit Entertainment negotiating to finance the film, to be produced by Michael De Luca and John Jacobs.[3] Bushell's script had placed on the 2010 Black List of Best Unproduced Screenplays.[4] In 2012, after Franco moved on from the role, it was briefly considered by Joaquin Phoenix, according to The Hollywood Reporter.[5]
In April 2013, it was reported that, after considering the role for about a year, Jim Carrey would star in Ricky Stanicky for Summit Entertainment, with Steve Oedekerk directing, Oedekerk rewriting the screenplay with Bushell, and De Luca and Jacobs producing.[4][5][6]
Pre-production
In September 2022, it was reported that Peter Farrelly would direct Ricky Stanicky in early 2023, and that he was in talks with Zac Efron and John Cena to star.[7] The screenplay was written by Farrelly, Brian Jarvis, and James L. Freeman,[8] based on an original spec script by Bushell and Oedekerk.[9]
In February 2023, it was reported that Amazon had acquired worldwide rights to the film, which would star Efron, Cena, and Jermaine Fowler.[8] On February 7, 2023, it was reported that William H. Macy, Anja Savcic, Andrew Santino, and Lex Scott Davis had joined the cast.[10] The film is produced by Paul Currie of Footloose Productions, Michael De Luca of Michael De Luca Productions, Thorsten Schumacher of Rocket Science, and John Jacobs of Smart Entertainment.[9]
Filming
Filming took place in Melbourne, Australia, in February and March 2023, with Melbourne doubling for Providence, Rhode Island.[11][12] The film received financial support from Australia's Location Incentive and Victorian Screen Incentive programs.[11]
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Ricky Stanicky was released by Amazon MGM Studios through its streaming service Prime Video on March 7, 2024.[13]
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 48% of 82 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.2/10. The website's consensus reads: "Ricky Stanicky gets some big laughs thanks to John Cena's up-for-anything performance, but they aren't enough to support the movie's thin plot and excessive runtime."[14] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 44 out of 100, based on 24 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[15]
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