| Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Matt Johnson |
| Written by |
|
| Based on | |
| Produced by |
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| Starring |
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| Cinematography | Jared Raab [1] |
| Edited by | |
| Music by | Jay McCarrol [1] |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Elevation Pictures [2] |
Release dates | |
Running time | 100 minutes [1] |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie is a 2025 Canadian time travel mockumentary-adventure film directed by Matt Johnson from a screenplay by Johnson and Jay McCarrol. The film stars Johnson and McCarrol as fictionalised versions of themselves in a band called "Nirvanna the Band" as they attempt to book a gig at the Rivoli, a bar and restaurant in Toronto, despite the fact that they have never actually written or recorded a single song, nor taken any steps to contact the Rivoli's management about booking a show. [1] A publicity stunt gone wrong accidentally sends Matt, Jay, and their friend/cameraman Jared back in time to the year 2008, leaving them stranded unless they can find a way to get back to the future. [3]
The film is based on Johnson and McCarrol's 2007–2009 web series Nirvana the Band the Show , as well as its 2017–2018 sequel television series Nirvanna the Band the Show .
Unemployed "bandmates," best friends and fictionalized alter egos of the creators, Matt and Jay want to land a gig at The Rivoli in Toronto even though they have never done a show and have never recorded a song, but, after a failed stunt to jump off The Skydome & their new scheme, involving a DeLorean-inspired RV, they're transported to 2008 and need a bottle of Orbitz to get 'Back To The Future.'
In May 2023, it was reported that Matt Johnson was returning to the series Nirvanna the Band the Show to make a film. [4] The series featured on Viceland for two seasons in 2017 and 2018, continuing on CBC in 2019. [5]
In October 2023, Johnson told the Empire Magazine Podcast that he had initially planned to film in the UK but that filming had instead got underway in the United States. [6] Johnson was quoted as saying that the success of the 2023 film Blackberry had helped the project secure funding from Telefilm. [7] [8] In January 2025, the film was announced to be titled Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie. [1] [9] [10]
A third season of the television show was filmed and partially edited but never released, as Viceland Canada shut down as a network before the season could be finished. Zapruder Films purchased the rights to the show, intending to finish and release the third season after the release of the feature film. [11]
On March 9, 2025, the film premiered at the 2025 South by Southwest Film & TV Festival. [10] [12] [1] Later that month, Neon acquired United States distribution rights to the film. [13]
It received positive reviews from the press and critics after premiering at SXSW, and currently has a 100% rating from review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. [3]
The film had its Canadian premiere in the Midnight Madness program at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival, [14] where it was the winner of the People's Choice Award, Midnight Madness. [15]
Rachel Ho of Exclaim! wrote that "Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie is quintessential Canadiana — made by Canadians, for Canadians. In a time when our country feels more divided than ever, Johnson offers us a reminder: although flawed in a multitude of ways, just like Matt and Jay, our potential as a nation remains. The answer to Canada's problems isn't going back to the good ol' days; it's standing on guard for thee today — or at least standing on guard at a street corner when a stranger asks you to watch over an electrical box that they're clearly misusing." [16]
For That Shelf, Courtney Small wrote that "for all its seemingly scattered ideas, Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie is rather meticulous in its construction. It works quite well as a time-travel film, on par with recent time spanning comedies such as Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes , getting plenty of milage out of conventional tropes including attempting to avoid their younger selves, and as a pop culture driven comedy." [17]
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