Pete Davidson and Judd Apatow join forces in the trailer for The King of Staten Island. Directed by Apatow, the film features Davidson in his first major big-screen role. The SNL veteran stars as Scott Ready, a 24-year old wannabe tattoo artist from Staten Island who still lives with his mother (Marisa Tomei) and spends his days goofing off and smoking weed. Like other Apatow characters before him, Scott is stuck in arrested development, and has been ever since his firefight father died when he was seven. But when his mom begins dating a hard-edged firefighter (Bill Burr), it gives Scott the push he needs to finally deal with his grief and get his life together.

With theaters still closed because of the coronavirus pandemic, Universal is sending The King of Staten Island straight to PVOD on June 12 (just a week before it was originally scheduled to open theatrically). It's the second Universal movie to go that route after Trolls World Tour in April - and while that family-friendly animated sequel was a success, it's anyone's guess how an R-rated Apatow dramedy will perform by comparison. Either way, its release is coming up in four weeks, so Universal is getting its marketing up and going.

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Today, Universal dropped the official trailer for The King of State Island online. You can check it out, below.

Apatow has increasingly tackled heavier topics in his comedies over the years, be it Funny People's exploration of terminal illness or This is 40's frank look at the disappointments and challenges that can come with middle-age. Judging by the trailer, The King of Staten Island examines similarly big subjects in-between its jokes. Scott is clearly dealing with unprocessed trauma from his father's death, suggesting Apatow is going for something deeper and more self-reflective than a generic comedy about a guy who needs to grow up. No doubt, there will be plenty of laughs (the trailer alone has a few good ones), but the emphasis on the sacrifices made by firefighters and those holding other dangerous, yet equally important, jobs indicates The King of Staten Island could prove to be one of the more poignant additions to Apatow's body of work.

Admittedly, Apatow's films (which emphasize improv over other forms of comedy) can be a bit divisive, and have occasionally come under fire for being regressive in their outlook (see also: Trainwreck). Because of this and the movie's R-rating, The King of Staten Island is unlikely to be as lucrative as Trolls World Tour, even as people continue to seek out entertainment while they self-quarantine. That hasn't prevented Universal from setting another movie, the Focus Features-backed The High Note, to release on-demand between now and Apatow's dramedy in June. The studio insists it PVOD films will complement its theatrical releases moving forward (even after the pandemic), but they may want to consider that strategy if these new movies fail to meet expectations.

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The King of Staten Island becomes available to rent on-demand on Friday, June 12.

Source: Universal