‘Proud’ Leslie Mann gushes over daughter Maude Apatow first time directing

Leslie Mann couldn’t be prouder of her daughter Maude Apatow, who just stepped into the director’s chair for the first time with Poetic License.

The comedy, set against a college backdrop, marks Maude’s directorial debut and features a heartfelt performance from her mom. 

The film, which also stars Cooper Hoffman, Andrew Barth Feldman, and Nico Parker, had its world premiere at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival. 

The cast reflected on their experience during a visit to the PEOPLE/EW and Shutterstock studio at TIFF on September 6.

For Mann, 53, working under her daughter’s direction was a career highlight. “I’m so proud. I just enjoyed every moment of it, truly,” she told PEOPLE. 

“I was so excited to be able to go to work and see her every day, all day long, which is my dream always, as a creepy mom! She’s so nurturing and so funny. I felt like I was in really good hands with her.”

Having worked with her husband Judd Apatow, 57, on several projects, Mann said this collaboration with her daughter felt especially personal. 

“I felt so safe in her hands,” she explained. 

“I feel like maybe on other movies there’s a lot of other noise that wasn’t there working with Maude. Because I just trust her. We can read each other’s minds, so it just felt like no noise, just pure creative space. That was really fun for me as an actor.”

Maude, 27, admitted she had some initial uncertainty about working so closely with her mom but was pleasantly surprised. 

“We weren’t sure how it was going to be when we started. However, it was seamless. It really was,” she said.

Her castmates agreed. Hoffman, 22, said the mother-daughter partnership clicked naturally, while Feldman, 23, called the set “such a wonderful” place to work because of their energy.

Outside of TIFF, the Apatow family has been spotted enjoying their time together.

Back in July, Leslie, Judd, and their youngest daughter Iris, 20, attended Wimbledon, where Leslie turned heads in a baby blue floral Bardot dress paired with white stiletto heels and bold red lipstick. 

Iris looked stylish in a polka dot drop-waist dress, while Judd coordinated in a blue plaid blazer.