Judd Apatow is gushing over Maria Bamford’s comedy skills as he promotes Paralyzed by Hope: The Maria Bamford Story. He also laughed about an ending that would make the documentary an Oscar winner.
Paralyzed by Hope: The Maria Bamford Storypremiered at the Sundance Film Festival. Apatow is discussing the comedian’s talent, declaring her "one of the best comedians of all time."
"Not to embarrass Maria, but I feel like she really is a true original in the subjects she chooses, but also her style and how she gets laughs and she always follows her ideas that she’s never adjusting for the mainstream," he told Deadline.
He continued, "She’s like the John Cassavetes of standup. You know what I’m saying? She’s the Radiohead! Come on, let’s go with more examples. The Neil Young of this shit!"
Maria chimed in, noting that she’s a bit old to have a documentary made about her.
"It’s late in the game, but it’s very exciting," she said. "Other people said this when they’ve had a documentary [made about them] that you’re worried you’re going to die. There’s going to be this plot point. It’s like, ‘And then, ooh, she slipped on a banana peel,’ and then the movie’s pretty great at that point."
"Then we’d win an Oscar," quipped Apatow.
Maria’s show Lady Dynamite was the first original scripted series that Netflix made, which is why she is special to the streamer and Netflix’s CEO Ted Sarandos makes an appearance in her new documentary.