Jesse Eisenberg appears determined to do it all. Best known as an actor in such movies as The Squid And The Whale, Now You See Me, Zombieland, Adventureland, Batman v Superman, and his Oscar nominated performance as Mark Zuckerberg in The Social Network, Eisenberg is also an established playwright, and author who has contributed numerous stories for The New Yorker in particular. He is also stepping behind the camera more consistently now after his first directorial effort, When You Finish Saving The World premiered at Sundance in 2022. Eisenberg returned to Sundance in January to premiere his second film as writer and director, A Real Pain, a kind of buddy road trip movie that only Eisenbeg could have dreamt up.
This time he not only writes and directs, but also stars along with Kieran Culkin, the latter playing a bit of a loose cannon, as the pair embark on a trip to Poland to trace family roots during the Holocaust. The house they discover was one that was already in Eisenberg’s family as it belonged to his Great Aunt, and holds great significance in the story of the film which won high praise after its Sundance debut and is now in theatres drawing audiences longing for the kind of smart indie dramedy it represents.
Eisenberg joins me for this week’s edition of my Deadline video series, Behind The Lens to talk about the movie, how it came about, the casting of Culkin (despite admittedly never having seen him in anything) who won an Emmy for Succession at just about the same time this movie was debuting in Sundance, plus the logistics of not only shooting in Poland but also being given permission to film some scenes at the real concentration camp that plays a part in the screenplay.
RELATED: ‘A Real Pain’: Jesse Eisenberg Envies Kieran Culkin’s Character Because “He’s Free-Spirited, Comfortable In His Own Skin” – Sundance Studio
To watch our conversation and to go ‘behind the lens’ with Jesse Eisenberg just click the link above.
Join me every Monday during Oscar season for a new episode of Behind The Lens.
