David Wain on Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass

David Wain joins us to talk about his new comedy, Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass — a Sundance 2026 Official Selection starring Zoey Deutch, Jon Hamm, and John Slattery, from Sony Pictures Classics.

The premise is deliberately, gloriously absurd: a Midwestern bride-to-be discovers her fiancé has used his "celebrity pass" to cheat — and sets off for Los Angeles to even the score with her own pass, Jon Hamm. What follows is a full-tilt Hollywood comedy that never apologizes for being exactly what it is.

We talk with Wain about writing the film with longtime collaborator Ken Marino, assembling a cast that spans three generations of comedy, shooting an original comedy entirely on location in Los Angeles, and why comedy for comedy's sake has become an increasingly rare thing to see on screen.

Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass is directed by David Wain, written by Ken Marino & David Wain, and releases in theaters July 10, 2026, from Sony Pictures Classics.

0:00 Intro: David Wain on Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass

0:52 Clip: The Hollywood Journey Begins

1:45 Meet David Wain

2:25 Why Make a Pure Comedy Now?

5:10 The Celebrity Pass Premise

8:42 Clip: The Joke Gets Complicated

9:28 Casting Zoey Deutch, Jon Hamm & John Slattery

12:40 From The State to Wet Hot American Summer