Uploaded November 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago

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Following a screening at AFI FEST 2025 presented by Canva on Friday, October 24, screenwriter, producer and actor Will Arnett and actor Laura Dern joined audiences for a conversation about their new film IS THIS THING ON?, moderated by writer and film critic Scott Mantz.

Directed by Bradley Cooper, IS THIS THING ON? is a beautifully affecting dramedy that follows a New York couple whose separation sparks a journey of self-reckoning and reinvention. Will Arnett and Laura Dern deliver standout performances as two people confronting love, loss and the search for purpose in midlife. Set against the backdrop of the West Village comedy scene, the film captures the grit, heart and humor of creative rebirth. The stellar supporting cast includes Cooper, Andra Day, Amy Sedaris, Sean Hayes, Christine Ebersole, Ciarán Hinds and Peyton Manning, alongside real-life New York comedians and club regulars.

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