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Exclusive: Please Don’t Destroy Movie Heads to Peacock, Where It Will Premiere in November

The writers of Saturday Night Live are currently on strike, including the show’s Please Don’t Destroy trio of Ben Marshall, John Higgins, and Martin Herlihy, and with the final three episodes of Season 48 canceled and no resolution to the strike in sight, it remains unclear when fans will be able to see new PDD sketches.

That said, the hilarious trio shot an untitled movie last summer for Universal during SNL‘s hiatus, and though the film had been earmarked for a theatrical release this August (against DC’s Blue Beetle), the studio has decided to pivot and release the buddy comedy exclusively on Peacock on Nov. 17.

The move was made in consultation with producers Judd Apatow and Jimmy Miller — who have both been involved in some of the biggest comedies of the last 25 years — and it makes sense given that SNL streams on Peacock, so its subscribers are already familiar with Please Don’t Destroy, just as a portion of the comedy troupe’s fanbase likely already subscribes to the service.

Directed by SNL alum Paul Briganti and written by its trio of stars, the still-untitled film follows three childhood friends who live and work together, and question where their lives are headed — if anywhere at all. Completely ill-equipped and out of their element, they head off for the mountains to find a lost treasure rumored to be buried there, though finding it may actually be the easiest part of the adventure.

In addition to the Please Don’t Destroy guys, the cast includes Conan O’Brien, Meg Stalter, Cedric Yarbrough, Sunita Mani, Nichole Sakura, X Mayo, and SNL sensation Bowen Yang.

Mosaic Films co-produced the movie with Apatow Productions, while Marshall, Higgins, and Herlihy executive produced alongside Josh Church, Sam Hansen, Michael Sledd, and M. Riley.

Please Don’t Destroy’s sketches are routinely my favorite parts of SNL, and they have featured guest appearances from major stars such as Taylor Swift, Lizzo, Jenna Ortega, and Oscar winner Rami Malek.

As for Peacock, the streamer is poised for a strong Q4 as it’ll have a three-part Continental series based on the John Wick franchise and the day-and-date debut of Five Nights at Freddy’s, which will bow simultaneously in theaters, plus Fast X will be streaming by then. It’ll also have NFL Sunday Night Football, Premier League Soccer, college football and basketball games from the Big 10, and the beloved Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, so engagement on the platform will be high, which should benefit Please Don’t Destroy’s debut feature. Peacock already plays host to top comedies such as The Office and 30 Rock, as well as Pete Davidson‘s new comedy series Bupkis, so expect its algorithm to steer fans of those shows toward the PDD movie.

Davidson had actually been slated to host SNL when the strike began, so his episode was canceled, and it was reported that HBO stars Kieran Culkin (Succession) and Jennifer Coolidge (The White Lotus) had been slated to host the final two episodes. Though it’s a bummer that the strike shut down SNL, it ultimately had to happen, as that’s a lucrative show for NBC Universal, and the writers need to hit studios and networks where it hurts, and where they’ve been hurting themselves — their wallets.

Hopefully, the AMPTP will have come to its senses by Nov. 17 — though it’s comforting to know there will be some laughs had that day regardless.

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