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‘The Rocker’ Cast: 10 Years Later

In August of 2008, I was a projectionist at a movie theater. One of the few perks of working at said movie theater was the ability to see all the movies for free when I was off the clock. Most of the movies I’d see free with no guilt,as one I had worked for that privilege and two Marvel or Lucasfilm wasn’t necessarily hurting for a paid admission on my behalf for their cinematic endeavors. Over the years, I’ve wound up regretting some of those free movies screenings because in the long run,it ended up hurting the films box office. Sure if I was just doing it, only one person wouldn’t affect it too much. However, the fact that I was seeing movies for free meant other theater employees were able to as well, and that’s when the damage begins to add up.  While the Iron Man and The Dark Knight movies did fine in 2008,the movie I’m here to talk about today didn’t: The Rocker.

With a budget of $15 million, the film only managed to make $8 million back with a then mostly unknown cast and mixed reviews from the critics. There’s many factors that converged on this film that in the end hurt it,  but in my research there is one fact I’ve discovered that surprised me. While 2008 was full of flops (looking at you Speed Racer), it seems that the comedy film genre was hit the hardest, with The Rocker, Sex Drive, and the Love Guru failing to make back their budgets.

In my opinion, this movie was a hilarious film that deserves more praise than it has gotten and at least deserves a view if you’ve yet to see it. The original music featured is catchy and simple enough to sing along to while watching, while every actor in this absolutely holds their own and gives just a sneak peek at what they were fully capable of. So with that being said, I thought it would be fun to check in on the cast who brought the film’s band ADD to life and see where they are and what they are up to 10 years later.

Rainn Wilson/Robert “Fish” Fishman

'The Rocker' Cast: 10 Years Later
Rainn Wilson Then/Now Credit:Fox(top)/CBS(bottom)

By 2008, Rainn was already 4 seasons deep into bringing one of his most well known roles to life as Dwight Shrute in the Office.  After the Rocker (and the Office), Rainn has kept busy on both the big and small screen in multiple films and television series. From “man’s man” coach  Wade Johnson in the horror comedy Cooties to a younger version of Harry Mudd in Star Trek:Discovery, Rainn (much like Fish himself) is showing no signs of settling down as on top of his acting career he also has managed to write a memoir on his life (The Bassoon King) AND create a company you may have heard of: SoulPancake.

Emma Stone/Ameilia Stone

'The Rocker' Cast: 10 Years Later
Emma Stone Then/Now Credit:Fox(top)/Summit(bottom)

At the time, Emma Stone was a relatively unknown actress. Making her film debut only a year earlier in the surprise hit Superbad, the Rocker would be only her second film and her first starring role. Playing teenage bass player Amelia in the film,  Emma even went so far as to learn how to play bass for the movie. While that commitment didn’t necessarily help the Rocker’s box office, it has served her well in the long run. She’s continually challenged herself and portrayed many different types of characters throughout her career:From Peter Parker’s ill-fated girlfriend Gwen Stacy in the Amazing Spiderman series to the one-step ahead survivor of the zombie apocalypse Wichita in Zombieland. Emma experienced her biggest success yet in 2016, as she won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in the critical darling film La La Land. In the film(much like Emma was back in 2008 during the Rocker) she portrayed an aspiring actress, who meets the love of her life while chasing her dreams in Los Angeles.

Teddy Geiger/Curtis Powell

'The Rocker' Cast: 10 Years Later
Teddy Geiger Then/Now Credit:Fox(top)/Indiewire(bottom)

Teddy’s character Curtis was the lead singer of ADD and also one of the main song writers for the band. Using his life experiences (such as the abandonment of his father), Curtis uses his pain to create honest but sad song lyrics, that with the help of Fish’s need to “Rock”, become power ballads that eventually outshine the mighty Vesuvius at their Hall of Fame Induction. Much like her character in the film, Teddy is a musically gifted human being. Following the release of two solo CD’s, she ultimately decided to focus on writing songs. You’ve heard her lyrics on the radio countless times over the years as she’s co-written many of singer Shawn Mendez’s  chart-topping hits such as “Stitches”, “There’s No Holding Me Back”, “Treat You Better”, and “Mercy”. In November 2017, Teddy announced to the world that she was in the process of transitioning, and had begun hormone replacement therapy. She was most recently honored in May 2018 for her work on Shawn Mendez’s music.

Josh Gad/Matt Gadman

'The Rocker' Cast: 10 Years Later
Josh Gad Then/Now Credit : Fox(top)/Disney(bottom)

Josh Gad played Matt, nephew of Fish and keyboardist of ADD. Much like Emma Stone, Gad had only been in a handful of movies before the Rocker. Since then however, he’s made appearances on stage, film,and TV screen and has become a household name through it. A man with many credits to his resume, his work voicing Olaf in Frozen and bringing the classic character Lefou to life in the live-action version of Beauty and the Beast for Disney, has already cemented his legacy in the industry even though he’s surely got his best years yet to come.

'The Rocker' Cast: 10 Years Later
Yes, Bradley Cooper was in this as well.
Credit:FOX

That wraps up this look back on what some of the cast from the Rocker is up to 10 years later. I had a chance to chat with some of my friends/followers on Facebook and it seems I’m not the only one who enjoyed this film immensely. That gives me hope that more people will continue to check it out in the coming years and continue to spread this movie around like an STD from an aging rock star. Also Rainn/Emma/Teddy/Josh: if you’re reading this: I owe you 8 bucks.

Did you enjoy The Rocker? Tweet me @cjcnov88 and let’s chat favorite ADD songs! Also take a look back at what the kids of Click are doing a decade later in another of my articles now!