[Editor’s note: The following contains spoilers for Self Reliance.]

The Big Picture

Actor Jake Johnson reflects on the cancellation of ‘Minx’ and the importance of finding an audience. Johnson was inspired by a Japanese reality show to create the film ‘Self Reliance,’ which he wrote, directed and stars in. The casting of Andy Samberg and a role tailored for Biff Wiff were crucial to the film’s success.

Written and directed by Jake Johnson, the comedic thriller Self Reliance (available to stream on Hulu) follows Tommy (played by Johnson), a man stopped by a limo that contains actor Andy Samberg presenting him with the intriguing offer of participating in a dark web reality TV show for the chance to win a million dollars. If he agrees, assassins will attempt to kill him for 30 days with the one loophole being that he can’t be killed if he’s not entirely alone. Tommy believes that will be a piece of cake because he thinks he’ll be able to just enlist his family to stay by his side, but when they prove to be uninterested in helping, he has to keep finding people he can rely on to keep him alive.

Inspired by a Japanese reality show, Johnson first conceived of Self Reliance as a three-season TV series, but when he got unanimous passes for that format, it ultimately evolved into what you see now. After watching the movie, Collider got the opportunity to chat with Johnson about his journey to making his feature directorial debut (he previously directed an episode of New Girl), the input from Lonely Island, tailoring a role for Biff Wiff, how the hosts became who they are now, and deciding to do some reshoots. He also talked about what he learned from directing New Girl, why he didn’t want to direct an episode of Minx, learning the importance of finding an audience, why he loves doing voice work, and his faith in Chris Miller and Phil Lord to do an excellent job with Beyond the Spider-Verse.

Self Reliance Given the opportunity to participate in a life or death reality game show, one man discovers there’s a lot to live for. Release Date January 12, 2024 Runtime 85 minutes

Collider: This movie is absolutely my sense of humor. I thought it was completely insane, but I mean that in the best way possible.

JAKE JOHNSON: Then I must say, it’s very clear that you’re a fucking weirdo then.

I completely embrace that.

JOHNSON: Me too.

Jake Johnson Feels Like There Was Still More to Explore With ‘Minx’
Image via Starz

Before I ask you about Self Reliance, I want to express my feelings of anger and sadness for not getting any more of Minx. I’ve really enjoyed watching the show and talking to you about it over the two seasons, and I’m very disappointed that we won’t get more with those characters. How do you deal with your own personal feelings about something like that, where you don’t get closure for a character and his world? What is that like, as an actor, having the book closed for you instead of being able to close it yourself?

JOHNSON: It’s something I’m very used to. New Girl got canceled too. When we got those final eight episodes, it was because Zooey [Deschanel] and I begged for them. Part of the job is that they take it away when they want to take it away. The saddest part about Minx, for me, is that the critics really liked it, which was really great. I’m starting to realize it was because the network sent links to the critics, but we couldn’t send those links to the people and not enough people were watching it. I think it was a great show and it was a lot of fun. I loved playing Doug Renetti, I love those people, and I don’t think the story is over. I wanted to play Doug Renetti in the eighties badly. The idea of when cocaine meets that group, I was like, “Man, that’s gonna be a fun season,” in Season 4 when Tina brings in cocaine and says, “It’s like coffee for the nose.” But the truth is, and the big head trip I’m on these days, is the importance of finding an audience. That’s something that, at least for me, I’ve not thought enough about in the last few years and it’s something I’m putting way more value into. Instead of making something for Hollywood and for the town and, honestly, for critics and for each other, the audience needs to love it. That’s the first order of business. And Minx was a reminder that we never got to them. A lot of indies are these great movies that people don’t see. And then, you make something else and everybody sees it. It’s different stuff. It’s really trippy.

Related ‘Minx’ Cancelled at Starz One Year After Being Saved for Season 2 The Jake Johnson and Ophelia Lovibond series was originally cancelled by HBO Max.

You’ve talked about how you had the idea for this movie a while ago and that it was the type of movie that you wanted to make. What was it exactly that inspired it? Were you watching something that made you think about it? Did you have a weird dream, like some people are inspired by?

JOHNSON: There was a Japanese reality show, back in the day, about 20 years ago, and there was a whole channel where they were really pushing it. They were putting humans in really weird situations and one of the situations they put this guy, who was a comedian, into an apartment and he was all excited. He was like, “Yeah, I’m the star. I won.” He was a straight-up comedic actor. And then, they stripped his clothes off, didn’t give him any food, there was no food in the apartment, he couldn’t leave, and he couldn’t cover himself up unless he won food and clothes from the newspaper and radio game shows. He would win rice and cry of happiness, but then he needed to win a pot in order to cook it. The show showed no mercy to this man. He was dying. He was going crazy and losing so much weight. But the darker it got, the funnier it was. That idea stuck with me for years. I was like, “I wanna make something that feels like that, but is in a tone that I can wrap my head around.”

That sounds like the saddest solo version of Survivor, ever.

JOHNSON: Yes, it was. Billie Eilish has that line about Survivor that really hit home because I like Survivor. She said, “I like to watch Survivor to see people suffer,” and I guess that’s why I like it. It’s fun to watch. It’s terrible.

‘Self Reliance’ Started as a Three-Season TV Series Before Evolving Into a Movie
Image via Hulu

You initially pitched this as a three-season TV series. What more would you have explored over seasons of a series that we don’t get in the film?

JOHNSON: My original idea was to end the season when he wins. He goes, “I won!,” and I wanted to cut out there. And then, for Season 2, I wanted to have him go do a press tour. Originally, the show took place in Japan and the hosts were not Icelandic. It was all Japanese, so I wanted Season 2 in Japan where they said, “We can’t give you your money until you finish the press tour,” and in the middle of a dark web press tour, he realizes he’s being hunted again. And then, in Season 3, he and Maddy’s character, who appeared in Season 1 a little bit, would find each other, form a romance, and go live out in a cabin, and he realizes that they found him out there.

What was the reaction when you pitched that?

JOHNSON: Pass. I would say a good 90% of the stuff I pitch is just a pass in the room. “Thanks so much for coming in, Jake.”

Before directing this, you had directed an episode of New Girl. When you directed that episode, was it with the idea that it was a good way to prepare to direct a movie? Were you already seriously thinking about directing a movie at that point?

JOHNSON: No. With that show, I got really obsessed with coverages. You’re on set so much, and watching how things are covered was so wild. And then, a guy like Trent O’Donnell was a coverage master that made me go, “How are you shooting this like that?” And Russ Alsobrook, our DP, and Casey Hotchkiss, our camera operator, would have discussions about how we were shooting, why we were shooting cross coverage versus singles or roving singles and two-shots, and all the stuff that if you’re into directing you care about, but I never cared about. That was the beginning of thinking about all that stuff, and shot listing and storyboarding. I wanted to direct an episode just to try to do that – to look at a script differently, see a scene and wonder, “How am I am gonna block this?” When you walk into a scene, some actors don’t think about cameras at all and you’re like, “If you’re insisting on standing there, that’s a two-hour relight just to get you in that corner. Can your character sit on the couch with the rest of us, you goober?” I was the beginning of that, and it was just really fun. And then, I directed some Sprint commercials and that was a totally different head trip and a lot of fun. And then, I directed some shorts for some friends. And then, this came up and I was like, “Yeah, I think I wanna actually try to do the whole thing.” The experience has been wild, in terms of an education.

Had you ever thought about directing an episode of Minx?

JOHNSON: I said I did not want to. I realized directing and acting in it is tricky, and the aesthetics of that show really matters. It’s a lot of beautiful oners. It’s a lot of movement. As a director for hire, I’m an actor’s director. I like cross coverage. I like simple coverages. I like two-shots. I think Self Reliance is really beautiful, but I think the trick that Adam Silver, our DP did, was go, “How can we make it beautiful while being efficient while shooting?” Minx was all about beautiful shots and crazy oners. That was fun to act in, but that’s not my style, as a director.

Did Jake Johnson Have a Backup Plan If Andy Samberg Didn’t End Up Playing Himself?
Image via Hulu

When you have Andy Samberg playing Andy Samberg, how does that start? Is there a backup plan if you can’t get Andy Samberg? Was there just not a name in the script until you got him to sign on? How did that work?

JOHNSON: There were different versions of it. When I started working with Lonely Island and Ali Bell, their producer, liked the script, I don’t remember who said it, but somebody said, “What about Andy as the guy in the limo?” I had written different versions of who it could be. I don’t wanna pitch those names, but they were all very different takes. So, the script I sent to Lonely Island was a dramatic actor, but then when Andy’s name came up, I was like, “Oh, my God, I would fucking love it if Andy would do it. Andy’s the best. Would he do it?” I think Ali said, “Well, you never know. I know he wants to work with you on this project.” So, we then changed it for Andy, and he came in and pitched a lot of jokes on it. And then, Akiva [Schaffer] helped write jokes. They helped do that version of Andy with me.

It also feels like the role that Biff Wiff plays had to be very specifically tailored to him. How did you create that role?

JOHNSON: Yes. Biff is my favorite type of actor. I’d been trying to find this for years with Ralph Ahn from New Girl and different characters. I haven’t been sure how to put into words, what I love about certain actors and what I don’t value in others. I know a lot of people value the actor type of actor, where you have no sense of them, but they really become the character, and they are trained and excellent and craftspeople, and their technique is dripping out of their ears and it’s great. I’ve never known why I don’t value that. When I watch them, all I think is, “Great performance! Amazing! Throw the roses at the screen!,” but I’m bored. And then, there’s somebody like Biff Wiff who walks into a room for the wardrobe and I’m already laughing. I was like, “What do you wanna wear?” And he went, “You tell me, boss.” And I was like, “Just fucking put a camera on you. You’re the best thing I’ve ever seen. I am in love with you.” We auditioned so many actors who played that part dramatically and had great performances, but I thought, “I don’t have a movie because it makes no sense why Tommy wants to hang out with this weird homeless guy. And then, as soon as Biff came in, I realized a lot of people might not get it, but I get why Tommy wants to hang out with him, and it’s because Jake wants to hang out with him.

Was there anything that changed a lot, either in the script stage before you started shooting or in the editing once you had shot it? Was there any advice or guidance you got that changed things?

JOHNSON: A lot changed. When every actor came in, it changed. When locations changed, everything changed. In post, we ended up reshooting. We got a couple extra days, so we shot new scenes, we experimented, and we changed things around. A movie is such a collaboration. I know that’s a basic thing to say, but everybody changes it. People’s energy changes stuff. The way the hosts who run the game were, even the way they look and talk was different than I had first imagined it. Those guys auditioned against each other. There was gonna be one long-haired guy with an accent, and then the other person was supposed to be very different. When I saw them, I felt like, “What if they’re both like this?” It was not the original idea, but I was like, “What if they’re brothers?” As brothers, I kind of loved it. So, everything kept changing.

Related ‘Self Reliance’ Review: Jake Johnson’s Directorial Debut Is a Comedic Take on David Fincher’s ‘The Game’ Johnson’s film is an often charming take on reality TV, but it’s the dynamic between Johnson and Anna Kendrick that steals the show.

You’ve said that you haven’t done any voice recording for the third Spider-Verse movie, Beyond the Spider-Verse. With it being the conclusion of the trilogy, are you hoping to get that call, sooner rather than later?

JOHNSON: Honestly, I have so much faith in Chris [Miller] and Phil [Lord], and all the directors and animators for this one. Certain jobs, I’m itching to do my stuff, so that I know I can get it in. Honestly, I feel like, when they give the call, it’s gonna be ready. I have nothing but faith that it’s gonna be excellent. They don’t really stop until it’s over – the animators, the directors, even Sony. That team really cares about this franchise in a way that’s really exciting to be a part of.

Jake Johnson Loves Doing Voice Work Because He’s Not Great at Memorizing His Lines
Image via Hulu

Has voice work been something that you took to pretty naturally? Is it something that you’ve really enjoyed from the first time you did it, or is it something you felt you’ve grown more into each time you’ve done it?

JOHNSON: I love it. I’m not great at memorizing. I get anxiety, and when I get anxiety, I feel like I’m on another planet. Sometimes on set, there’ll be all this pressure, and I’ll be trying to remember the lines, but they just don’t make any sense to me and I just wanna get out of there and not have to keep doing it. And then, I’ll go through the deep questions of like, “Why do I keep doing this? Why am I here? What am I doing?” And I never have that with voiceovers. You stand in a dark room, you’ve got all this great writing, you can improvise, you can act with another actor in the room, you’re not worried about your coverage or somebody seeing your big nose. It’s great. You do 50 takes and you know you gave them what they wanted. You don’t have to drive home being like, “I never said that word correctly.” And then, when you see it, you don’t even have to see yourself on screen. You get to see artwork on screen. I can’t imagine a better job.

Self Reliance is available to stream on Hulu. Check out the trailer:

Watch on Hulu