On Cinema (also called On Cinema at the Cinema) is an American comedyweb series and podcast starring Tim Heidecker and Gregg Turkington. The duo appear, using their own names, as a pair of hapless movie reviewers to promote new film releases. The show started as an independently released podcast from 2011 to 2013, before being picked up as a professionally produced web video series by Thing X in 2012, continuing after the site merged with Adult Swim's website in 2013.[1] The show moved to HEI Network, an independent service, in 2021, with funding given by user subscriptions and special event ticket purchases.[2][1]
On Cinema at the Cinema is the hub of a 'fictional universe' that includes the podcast, 14 seasons of the video series,[3] yearly live Oscar specials, a spin-off limited series entitled "The Trial",[4] the spin-off series Decker, a movie review app, an On Cinema Live! tour,[5][6][7][8] and a film entitled Mister America.
On Cinema also features myriad guest actors, some of whom play fictionalized versions of themselves, most notably Joe Estevez and Mark Proksch. The show and fictional universe have a dedicated cult following of fans who play along with the storylines via social media, often taking sides as "Timheads" or "Greggheads", or "Unityheads" for those that do not take a side.[9] Heidecker and Turkington also started Decker-Con, where they appear in character and interact with fans.[10]
Premise
Early podcast episodes of On Cinema were usually no longer than one or two minutes. Heidecker and Turkington would "review" films without actually providing any meaningful information or critical insight. With the video series, Tim and Gregg start using a rating scale of "bags of popcorn" ranging from 0–5.[1] While Gregg respects the limit of five, Tim often goes overboard giving "6 bags" or dozens more, creating tension with Gregg. Almost every film gets a score of "5 bags"—known as a 'five-bagger'—or higher from both reviewers.[1]
Although reviewing films remains the central conceit, the focus of the series quickly shifted from a mockery of amateur podcasting and YouTube criticism to an extended, improvisational character study of the duo. Heidecker frequently uses his time on camera to discuss anything on his character's mind except film, or to simply berate and belittle Turkington. Turkington's character fancies himself a "film expert," his only qualification being an enormous collection of forgettable mainstream films from the 1980s and 1990s on VHS.
The series continues to provide reviews that purposely offer no real critical insight. Later seasons have seen Tim lose interest in reviewing movies, instead creating a TV show, Decker, and starting a rock band, Dekkar. The scale of events has increased dramatically as the show has progressed, with both Tim and Gregg causing deaths and injuries, mainly indirectly.
Major characters
Tim Heidecker
Played by Tim Heidecker as a fictionalized version of himself, Tim is the creator and host of On Cinema. Despite being host, he appears to know very little about the films he is discussing, although he is an avid fan of Tom Cruise and Jack Reacher. Tim often uses his show to discuss his conservative views and personal problems, or to promote his other projects, like his action series Decker, his band Dekkar or his company HEI Inc. Tim is an aggressive and egomaniacal alcoholic, constantly drinking and berating his costars during the Oscar specials.
Tim has faced multiple family problems throughout the show. Tim has an estranged teenage son from his first marriage, which ended after he underwent brain surgery against the wishes of his wife. He then met Ayaka while she was staying with his family as a foreign exchange student. The two eventually marry and have a child called Tom Cruise Jr. Heidecker. Tom Cruise Jr. died shortly after birth after Tim refused to have him vaccinated, and his death led to their marriage rapidly spiraling apart. After they divorced, Tim married Juliana, the sister of fellow Dekkar band member Axiom, which was short-lived. Tim then began a relationship with Toni Newman, the sole juror who refused to find Tim guilty and Tim's aide for his political campaign. They married twice, but following an affair and a trip to rehab, a newly sober Toni divorced Tim. Later, after Toni’s son Matt is shot and killed, they reconcile.
Gregg Turkington
Played by Gregg Turkington as a fictionalized version of himself, Gregg is a frequent guest of On Cinema, sometimes acting as host when Tim is away. Gregg is a film buff and self-described movie expert, with a large amount of unimportant, uninteresting and often incorrect trivia to share about films discussed on the show. Despite his obvious lack of critical insight Gregg believes that On Cinema should be devoted exclusively to "the movies" rather than Tim's personal life and views. Gregg has an extensive collection of VHS cassettes located in Victorville, California, which he refers to as the Victorville Film Archives, boasting that it's one of the largest film archives in North America, though its exact size is unknown and has been destroyed on multiple occasions by Tim. Gregg's favorite film is The Hobbit and he describes himself as a "Hobbithead", campaigning every year for the Academy Awards to recognize Peter Jackson and give the Best Picture award to The Hobbit trilogy, believing that the academy has "a write-in section". Gregg produces many of the show's recurring segments, including "Popcorn Classics" and "On Cinema On Location", and plays Special Agent Jonathan Kington on Decker. Despite his clear antipathy towards Tim, as well as the constant abuse he suffers under him, Gregg repeatedly returns to On Cinema in the hopes that he will be made co-host.
Almost nothing is known about Gregg's personal life. He is mainly quiet and withdrawn, actively avoiding confrontation, redirecting almost every conversation into a movie reference and regarding real-world events and documentary films as pointless distractions. Though not as openly hostile as Tim, Gregg is often stubborn and passive-aggressive, insisting on his incorrect knowledge when challenged and quietly criticizing Tim when he steals the limelight. As the series progresses, Gregg has shown himself to be almost as sociopathic as Tim, showing apathy towards Mark Proksch's various injuries, and at one point putting a comatose and gold-painted Mark on display as a "living Oscar".
Recurring characters
Joe Estevez: Joe is a prolific actor and close friend of both Tim and Gregg and the second most regular guest on On Cinema. He portrays President Davidson and President Davidson Jr. on Decker. He is often friendly and forbearing, and often helps both Tim and Gregg out with their projects and personal problems. He staged Tim's intervention in season 8 and was the only person to visit him while in jail in season 9.
Mark Proksch: Mark is an aspiring comedian and impersonator, having been hired by Tim and Gregg to do impersonations of famous actors, such as W.C. Fields, Charlie Chaplin, and the Three Stooges, for the Oscar specials. He also played various roles in Decker, most notably the Taliban terrorist Abdul. Mark is a poor impressionist, reciting biographic information instead of imitating his subjects and doing a similar voice for every impression. He has taken various odd jobs related to Tim and Gregg's projects, and frequently faces verbal and physical abuse from Tim.
Ayaka Ohtani (portrayed by Ayaka Ohwaki): Ayaka was a foreign exchange student who stayed with Tim's family. She dated Tim briefly before being deported back to Japan, giving birth to their son, Tom Cruise Jr. They later reunited after a heartfelt plea by Tim during an episode. During Tim's trial, Ayaka called Tim a cold, abusive husband and revealed that Tim forced her to abort their second child. This ended their relationship, and Ayaka returned to Japan and married a new man.
Luther Sanchez (portrayed by Zac Holtzman): Commonly referred to as "Dr. San", he was a practitioner of alternative medicine, serving first as Tim's acupuncturist and later as his family physician with the birth of Tom Cruise Jr. A con-man, Dr. San tricked Tim out of large sums of money for sub-standard acupuncture with dirty needles, convinced him not to vaccinate his child, and provided him with toxic vape pens that poisoned him and later resulted in the death of 20 people at Tim's music festival. He was arrested along with Tim and committed suicide while in custody.
Tom Cruise Jr. Heidecker (portrayed by an unknown child actor): Tim and Ayaka's son, named by Ayaka after Tim's favorite actor Tom Cruise. He died of an undisclosed illness after his father, under the supervision of Dr. San, refused to vaccinate him. Tim hotly contests this, claiming that Tom Cruise Jr.'s death was caused by a fatal buildup of black mold at Gregg's beach house. Tim later 'resurrects' Tom Cruise Jr. as a fully-grown CGI mannequin on both the fourth and seventh Oscar specials, with 'Tom' taking a stance against vaccination like his father.
Alessandro "Axiom" Serradimigni: Axiom is an Italian guitar player who became the second member of Dekkar after meeting Tim at Guitar Center. Loyal to Tim, Axiom at one point donates his hand to Tim via a hand transplant. At Tim's trial, it is revealed that he originally wrote the song that became Tim's "Empty Bottle", despite not being given a writing credit. He and Tim have had multiple fallings-out, such as after Tim dissolves Dekkar and after Axiom has an affair with Tim's wife Toni. He has a sister, Julianna, who Tim was briefly married to.
Manuel Giusti: Manuel is the third member of Dekkar, having joined in the fourth Oscar special, and is also a friend of Axiom. Overwhelmingly loyal to Tim, Manuel donates skin from his buttocks to repair Tim's burned face and perjured himself at Tim's trial by presenting a falsified suicide note that Tim wrote and had Manuel claim came from Dr. San. He has never cut ties with the band, throughout its multiple rebrands and new members. He is hospitalized when Tim crashes the VFA Tour Bus in season 13, and briefly forgets how to speak English.
Toni Newman (portrayed by Terri Parks): Toni first appeared in Mister America as Tim's campaign manager for his district attorney campaign. Toni was the sole juror in Tim's trial who refused to vote guilty, resulting in the mistrial. While Toni was more competent than Tim in some areas, she was often equally disorganized and didn't hesitate to employ illegal tactics to achieve her ends. She later joined HEI Inc. as the CFO. They married at the end of season 11 and again during the seventh Oscar Special. During season 12, Toni has a drunken affair with Axiom. She goes to rehab and returns sober, revealing that she was constantly under the influence of alcohol the entire time she knew Tim, and admitting that she knew he was guilty. She kicks Tim out of her house and files for divorce, though later reconciles with Tim after the death of Matt during season 14.
Matt Newman (portrayed by Tobias Icasatti): Matt is Toni's son from a previous marriage. As a step-dad, Tim tried to bond with Matt in both the seventh and eighth Oscar special, mainly talking about video games. Matt doesn't show much love for Tim, and didn't give a toast at the wedding reception. Matt even messes with Tim, leading him to believe that Dr. San has been talking to him from beyond the grave. Matt was shot and killed during a botched home invasion during the events of season 14.
Michael "LaRue" Matthews: LaRue originally appeared as a bit actor from Decker, and was later hired by Tim as his bodyguard and private detective. Michael is a right-wing militant who believes in various right-wing conspiracies theories typically found on the Internet and is regularly sent by Tim on errands to obtain personal information on his supposed enemies. He's also a gun enthusiast, the host of Xposed on the HEI Network, and an amateur rapper that performed with Tim's band DEK4R. Since Gregg ran him over during the eighth Oscar special, LaRue uses an electric mobility aid vehicle.
Hank Friedmann: Hank is a restaurateur who has worked for many franchises catering the Oscar specials over the years. In the third special, he runs Chaplin's Chili, serving chef Tom Chaplin's chili. In the fourth special, he now runs Chaplin's Soup and Subs, having split from Tom Chaplin after the brand was acquired. In the fifth special, he runs Chaplin's X-press, now a gas station restaurant. In the sixth special, he runs QwikBite, having legally been forced to drop the Chaplin name. In the ninth special, he runs Tim's HEI Ranch Grub Shack. In the tenth special, he runs Tom's Original Chili and serves chili flavored popcorn.
John Aprea: An actor best known for appearing on The Godfather Part II, John first appears on the first Oscar special and later serves as a guest host of On Cinema. He also appears on Decker as General Jeffrey Cotter. John tends to maintain a professional composure lacked by many of the other characters.
James Dean (portrayed by Ralph Lucas): A famous actor that many believed died in 1955, until Gregg revealed in 2015 that he had faked his death, bringing him out as a guest in the third Oscar special. Tim refused to believe it was him and got Dr. San to perform a DNA test in the fourth Oscar special, which confirmed he was in fact James Dean. He plays Dracula on Decker.
Wendy Kerby (portrayed by Jessica Ruth Bell): Wendy is a singer who frequents Tim and Toni's church and first appeared in the eighth Oscar special. She joins Tim's band, D4, replacing Axiom. She appears as co-host in the Wendy Kerby Valentines Day Special, but after an awkward attempt by Tim to stage a kiss between her and Manuel, she runs off set and doesn't return.
G. Amato (portrayed by Carlos Barbouth): G. Amato is a mysterious investor and owner of The Amato Group, which funds production of On Cinema from season 13 onward. He was introduced in the ninth Oscar special as the person with the most HEI Points. He has been using Tim's HEI Ranch to mine lithium. He unofficially adopts Tim as a son in the tenth Oscar special.
Kaili Amato (portrayed by Marie Gibeault): Kaili is the daughter-in-law of G. Amato. From On Cinema season 13 onwards, she co-hosts and provides updates on Hollywood gossip. She is a widow, after her husband Chris Amato was suspiciously killed. In On Cinema season 14, Gregg develops an unrequited attraction towards her, culminating in a failed marriage proposal during AmatoCon.
Joey Patrocelli (portrayed by Eddie Alfano): Joey is an employee of The Amato Group and co-host of On Cinema on Demand during season 14. Joey is an athletic, composed, and well spoken man with a fondness for mafia movies. He often comes into conflict with Gregg over his pre-recorded segment, "Joey's Take," and his use of a four star rating system, as opposed to Gregg's five bags.
Dudley Moore (portrayed by Richárd Bernard): "Dudley" is an impersonator of the late actor, introduced in the seventh Oscar special as part of Gregg's celebration of Arthur. He later returns, with CGI, in Deck of Cards as the Two of Diamonds, and pays tribute to Gregg in the tenth Oscar special.
Corwin Allard is an actor and national level high school baseball player who originally appeared in “Decker: Unclassified” as Young Decker, Jr. at the age of nine. Corwin also appeared as himself in the 10th Annual Oscar Special and was brought in by Axiom and Manuel to replace Tim in Dekkar and appears in the “Ride With the Devil” music video.
The On Cinema podcast was produced independently by Tim and Gregg. The podcast consists of Tim, along with Gregg as a "special guest" for almost every episode, covering movies poorly and with little insight, and often engaging in arguments. Gregg later developed a more pretentious "film buff" persona, and Tim took a turn to being obnoxiously political, sometimes devoting entire episodes to conspiracy theories, much to the chagrin of Gregg.
A running joke that was carried over to the video series is Gregg's confusion between Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, stubbornly insisting that Tim is the one with the movies reversed, rejecting any evidence to the contrary.
Seasons 1–6
On Cinema at the Cinema launches as a video series in 2012. The series is similar to the podcast, taking place on a set meant to look like a movie theater. Gregg is still never acknowledged as more than a guest, and begins his recurring segments "Popcorn Classics", where he brings in forgotten VHS movies to showcase, and "On Cinema On Location", where he travels to filming locations of obscure movies, respectively.
Tim reveals in season 2 that he has blood clotting in his brain but rejects surgery because of "side effects, the whole medical industry, and Obamacare", while Gregg pushes for him to get surgery. He eventually does in season 3, although his first wife, Stephanie, divorces him for doing so. Tim continues to have health problems in season 4, and introduces his personal doctor, Dr. San (Zac Holtzman), an alternative medical doctor treating Tim with "natural" remedies, including acupuncture. Tim's face becomes infected and he denounces Dr. San. Tim moves to Jackson Hole, Wyoming in season 5, and buys a motorcycle to commute back and forth to Hollywood for the On Cinema taping. He becomes a proponent of 'simple living' and state rights, embracing his Republican values.
Late in season 2, Tim introduces Ayaka Ohwaki, a foreign exchange student from Japan staying with Tim's family. They start to date in season 3, until Ayaka was deported back to Japan. Ayaka sends a letter to Tim announcing that she is pregnant in season 4. Tim tries to convince Ayaka to have an abortion in season 5, despite his pro-life stance. Ayaka keeps the child and names him Tom Cruise Heidecker Junior, after Tim's favorite actor, Tom Cruise. She moves back to America and into Gregg's apartment. Tim denies paternity and moves permanently to Jackson Hole, making Gregg the host of the show. This was short-lived, as Tim realizes his friends in Jackson Hole were white supremacists. He returns as host in the second episode of season 6, moving in with Gregg and Ayaka. He rekindles his relationship with Ayaka and ultimately proposes to her at the end of season 6.
In season 3, Gregg begins his goal of watching "500 movies in 500 days", hoping to make the Guinness Book of World Records. He also gets even more into VHS collecting, introducing a confusing new coding system for organizing his tapes. Gregg interviews actor Joe Estevez in season 2, with Joe later becoming a recurring guest. Gregg continues to stubbornly insist that San Francisco was the location of Star Trek II, briefly leading to him being ejected off the show in season 3.
Annual live "Oscar Specials" start in 2013, airing at the same time as the Academy Awards. Tim often gets belligerently drunk, disrupting the planned events, being verbally and physically abusive, and upsetting Gregg. Mark Proksch is introduced in the second special, doing impersonations of W. C. Fields and Charlie Chaplin. In the third special, Peyton Reed comes on to promote his new film Ant-Man and announces that Gregg has been cast as a minor character in the movie, which upsets Tim.
Tim premieres his new show Decker during season 5, with Gregg initially angered by the fact Tim used footage of him without asking, although he later warms up to his role after positive fan feedback. Decker: Port of Call: Hawaii premieres during season 6, with Tim and Gregg repeatedly traveling to Hawaii to shoot, exhausting them. Gregg accidentally spoils the planned ending, resulting in Tim shooting a new ending where he destroys all of Gregg's tapes. Gregg leaves the show and plans to start his own.
Seasons 7–9
Gregg moves to Victorville, California in season 7, and opens the Victorville Film Archives in a storage locker, where he also lives. He also shows pride in his role in Ant-Man, which Tim gives a rare one bag of popcorn. Tim praises Fantastic Four, which he has a minor role in, which Gregg claims he paid $15,000 to appear in. The show itself moves to Victorville in season 8 when Tim moves in with Gregg and they both buy an abandoned movie theater. The theater, Victorville Film Center, has nightly showings from Gregg's VHS collection. Mark is hired as a concessions cashier. Tim launches his own theater, Six Bags Cinema, in season 9, with recliner chairs and a waiter (also Mark) to serve food. The VFC burns down, with Gregg insinuating that Tim burned it down for the insurance money.
Tim starts a rock band named Dekkar with another member, Axiom, in season 7, and releases their debut single "Empty Bottle" on the show. Tim's new interest in music annoys Gregg, who just wants the show to focus on movies. The fourth Oscar Special features periodic musical performances by Dekkar and introduces the third member of the band, Manuel Giusti.
Ayaka gets a job, working for Dr. San. When Tim finds out about this, he storms off set to confront Dr. San, only for them to forgive each other. Dr. San takes over as Tom Cruise Junior's new pediatric doctor. By the season 7 finale, Tim announces that his son has died. Ayaka becomes pregnant again in season 8. After Tim tries to get her to have an abortion again, she leaves him and returns to Japan.
Dr. San prescribes Tim a "nutritional vape system" in season 8, which replaces all meals and food with an electronic cigarette full of supposed nutrients. Tim's physical condition worsens as he keeps using the vape, as he comes to the set sweating, bruised, unfocused and hallucinating. Eventually, Tim goes to an actual doctor who informs him his blood is full of illegal drugs. Tim quits and swears off Dr. San once again, only to relapse. A fire is started in the storage unit one night after Tim's vape pen overheats, burning the entire facility down, including the VFA. Tim suffers third degree burns on all of his body, including his face and hands. He returns to the show in bandages so he can keep working to pay for the damages and lawsuits, which exceed $1,000,000. Tim returns to a surprise intervention from Gregg, Joe, John Aprea, Mark, Ayaka, Ayaka's father, and Axiom, encouraging Tim to live a healthier life, which does not work. Due to his injuries, he retools Dekkar into an electronic band, known as DKR. Tim's skin dies in season 9 after he stops using facial cream for his burns. Tim chooses Manuel to give him a skin transplant, with Axiom giving Tim his right hand.
To get Gregg to return for season 7, Tim promised to let him write, direct, produce the next season of Decker. This season, titled Gregg Turkington's Decker vs. Dracula, is cancelled after three episodes after Tim lambasted Gregg for making a "mockery" of the franchise, irritating Gregg. A fourth season, Decker: Unclassified, premieres on Adult Swim in 2016. While Tim is the main producer again, some of Gregg's ideas, including Dracula, are retained. A fifth and sixth season, Unsealed and Mindwipe respectively, premiered in 2017.
The Trial
In season 9, Tim hosts the Electric Sun Desert Music Festival in Apple Valley, California, where Dr. San gives out free samples of his vape system, resulting in 20 deaths and over 100 injuries. Tim and Dr. San are arrested and jailed on murder and manslaughter charges. Tim, with his lawyer, Doug Lyman, pins the 20 deaths on Dr. San and the Apple Valley authorities who did not respond in time. However, Dr. San commits suicide in jail, so the relatives of the 20 who died now primarily blame Tim for the deaths.[11]
Tim is put on trial for the death of the "Electric Sun 20". Frustrated with his attorney Mark Dwyer, Tim decides to represent himself and proceeds to threaten the prosecution led by Vincent Rosetti and its witnesses and falsify evidence. Tim is issued multiple contempt citations. Nicholas Meyer, director of Star Trek II and co-writer for Star Trek IV, appears as one of the witnesses in an attempt by Tim to settle the San Francisco Star Trek argument with Gregg. Ultimately, Tim is found not guilty for only one of the 20 deaths, as that victim died of a heroin overdose. A mistrial is called for the remaining 19, due to a hung jury with 11 guilty and 1 not guilty verdicts.[12]
A film marquee for Mister America drawing on an On Cinema at the Cinema joke for the defunct loan website Moneyzap.com
Tim revamps On Cinema in season 10, also known as "Season X", with a new intro and set, and filmed episodes 4 through 6 in 360-degree video. The revamp faces a snag after a civil suit from the Delgado family, a family of one of the Electric Sun victims, is filed. Tim's assets, including On Cinema and Decker, are seized, Rio Jenesis drops its sponsorship, and he faces potential bankruptcy. He manages to convince the family of one of the victims, the Delgados, to let him try to earn money for them with his various assets. The Delgado Media Holdings company is created and they hire Gregg as the managing editor, giving him creative control. Gregg's role quickly increases to that of host, while Tim's role was diminished to announcer. In the season finale, an irate Tim destroys the set, insults the Delgados, and announces his campaign for district attorney of San Bernardino County against the incumbent Vincent Rosetti. This campaign fails, and Tim is booted off the show.
During the fifth Oscar Special, Mark is locked tight into a standard diving dress while doing an impression of Matt Hooper from Jaws, but is knocked out from asphyxiation and enters a coma. Gregg takes care of comatose Mark and uses this to relaunch the VFA, which appears to now be several bins full of VHS tapes stocked in Mark's hospital room. Gregg also starts collecting and wearing movie promotional hats to Tim's vocal displeasure.
Delgado Media Holdings produces the sixth Oscar Special, hosted by Rafael Torres, with Gregg in charge of the show. Tim breaks into the studio with militant conspiracy theorist Michael "LaRue" Matthews, to wrest control and promote QAnon theories. Tim accidentally maces Torres, and manages to erase Gregg's tape collection with his magnetic vest. A comatose Mark is used by Gregg as a "living Oscar"; Tim accidentally resuscitates Mark by knocking him over. Delgado Media Holdings is sold back to Tim with the help of a suspicious money lending vendor called MoneyZap, which Tim uses to start season 11. LaRue becomes a member of Dekkar and raps about the deep state in a new remix of "Empty Bottle".
Gregg starts the Mobile VFA in season 11, which consists of him and Mark simply selling VHS tapes on the flea market. Later, he starts up a VFA Classic Movie program, where he sells public domain movies with commentary dubbed over the originals. Gregg bundles the original A Star Is Born with the 2018 adaptation, believing it to have entered the public domain along with the original, which gets Mark arrested for bootlegging. Mark gets put into a coma again while in prison and goes missing after being discharged from the hospital.
Tim's failed campaign for district attorney is covered in Mister America, which was distributed by Magnolia Pictures and released on October 4, 2019, at Beyondfest, held at Grauman's Egyptian Theatre.[13][14][15] The film introduces Toni Newman, the lone juror who voted not guilty at Tim's trial, who becomes Tim's campaign manager. Tim calls the film a sham after its release during season 11, and doxxes the film's director, "Josh Lorton" (Eric Notarnicola), as retaliation. Toni becomes CFO of HEI Inc. and advises Tim to disband Dekkar and fire Joe Estevez. Tim and Toni marry at the end of the season.
Tim annuls his marriage in the seventh Oscar Special in order to stage a more elaborate second wedding with her. Gregg arrives at the wedding dressed as the Joker, driving his car housing the Mobile VFA onto the set. Gregg leaves his car running throughout the special, causing the entire production crew and wedding party to fall unconscious to carbon monoxide poisoning, leading to two deaths.
Season 12
The show moves to HEI Network, a subscription streaming service created by Tim, in early 2021. Tim and Gregg host separate Oscar specials in 2021. Tim and Toni host their special in a studio similar to that of a talk show, while Gregg hosts his special in the Mobile VFA. Tim reluctantly calls Gregg after being dissatisfied with Axiom's movie knowledge and invites him onto his show. Gregg later storms off set and back to his car after LaRue declares him guilty for the deaths from the last special, and runs over LaRue after he gets in the way, later leaving him in a wheelchair. Gregg sells off the VFA to Tim in exchange for no charges being pressed.
Season 12 starts with a new intro, theme, and set. Toni, drunk at her birthday party, has an affair with Axiom. Toni goes to rehab for her drinking problems while Axiom is kicked out of Dekkar. The band is renamed to D4, with Wendy Kerby, a singer from Tim and Toni's church introduced in the prior Oscar Special, joining. Toni is released from rehab and tells Tim she is leaving him, confessing she was a heavy alcoholic for the entire time she had known Tim and that she knew he was guilty. Mark is again spotted by a fan, this time performing as Spider-Man on a street in Hollywood. Tim convinces Mark to return. Gregg reveals that he is working with Joe on a new movie, Deck of Cards, focusing on "the original Joker", the playing card.
Tim and Wendy Kerby host a Valentine's Day special in 2022. After an awkward staged sketch where Tim tries to instigate a kiss between Wendy and Manuel, she becomes uncomfortable and abruptly leaves, leaving D4 unable to perform. Manuel convinces Tim to patch things up with Axiom, and the three give an impromptu Dekkar reunion.
On Cinema! and More in the Morning
The ninth Oscar Special takes place at the planned site of the HEI Ranch, Tim's proposed business and media center, located on a remote stretch of land near Apple Valley, California. Little work has been done, with construction vehicles everywhere and the water brown and dirty. Gregg unveils the VFA Tour Bus, made from a hastily remodeled van. G. Amato, a financial backer with more HEI Points than anyone else, is introduced. The cast and crew are harassed by locals who drive dirt bikes on set, point rifle lasers, sabotage the power from the generator, and ultimately fire upon the crew at the end of the special. Gregg evacuates everyone in his tour bus except for Tim, who confronts the locals and gets injured.
Deck of Cards released on September 2, 2022, albeit heavily edited by Tim, making a program similar to Decker. Season 13 debuted October26, with the program being retooled into a morning show titled On Cinema! and More in the Morning.[16] Kaili Amato now co-hosts, with The Amato Group providing funding and the new venue. Kaili and Tim expand the focus from films to social media and Hollywood in general, with Gregg included for movie discussion. A Dekkar reunion tour goes awry when their tour bus, the VFA Tour Bus, rolls into a ditch late at night, injuring Tim, temporarily blinding Axiom, and leaving Manuel unconscious for weeks. When Manuel gains consciousness again, he is unable to understand English.
After the crash, Tim starts drinking the brown grain water at the HEI Ranch, which contains lithium and other materials, claiming the water is healing him, despite it frequently making him throw up. Tim has a doctor lethally inject him in order to prove the grain water unlocks immortality; although it did not kill him, he remained unconscious and had to be hospitalized. After two weeks, Tim is released only to find out that his trailer at the HEI Ranch, with all of his personal belongings, was removed. Attempts to contact Axiom, Manuel, and G. Amato fail. Gregg offers to let Tim stay at his house, with Tim accepting and thanking him for being a friend.
On Cinema On Demand
The tenth Oscar Special celebrates 10years of Gregg's movie expertise, complete with musical numbers and a Gregg-themed set. Tributes to Gregg are provided by Tim, Joe, the Queen of Hearts from Deck of Cards, Dudley Moore, and Corwin Allard, who portrayed a young Decker in Decker: Unsealed. Tim's initial support and praise of Gregg turns sour once G.Amato reaffirms his support for Tim and calls him a second son. Gregg launches the VFN, a streaming network for classic films. The service, consisting of a Dropbox folder full of public domain movies, unintentionally includes dashcam footage of the VFA Tour Bus crash, which appears to show Tim intentionally swerving the car into traffic in a suicide attempt, before turning into a ditch. The footage spreads to Twitter and eventually to the people on set. Tim, fully dressed as Pinocchio for a planned scene, plays the footage live. Axiom and Manuel swiftly leave afterward, leaving Tim to have a violent, emotional breakdown with only G.Amato, dressed as Geppetto, consoling him.
On Cinema is retooled once more, as a video podcast titled On Cinema On Demand. Tim refers to himself as T. Amato, calling G. Amato "dad". Tim no longer reviews movies as he claims to have a disorder that makes him confuse films with reality, which disorients and horrifies him. Gregg continues to review films, as does Joey Patrocelli, the show's new co-host, who uses a four-star system and decries wokeness in Hollywood. Tim announces AmatoCon, a 3-day business convention hosted by The Amato Group, with the final night's events (March 10, coincidentally the same night as the Oscars) being streamed online. Axiom and Manuel cut ties with Tim, continuing Dekkar with a new band member, Corwin. They release a new single called "Ride with the Devil", subtly comparing Tim to the devil. Tim blasts the new song as awful, calls Corwin a Judas, and suggests that Axiom and Manuel should be deported. Tim later challenges the band to perform at AmatoCon against "T. Amato and the Empty Bottle Players" to determine which band is the real Dekkar. Gregg starts trying to bond with Kaili after finding out she is a fan of Harry Potter, giving her presents and tickets to see the movies with him, which she doesn't follow through on.
Joe starts giving legal advice on the show as "Judge" Joe Estevez. In his first segment, he mentions that the district attorney is looking into reopening the Electric Sun case, with Toni assisting. Tim states that "we can't allow that" and briefly leaves the set. A couple of weeks later, Toni's son, Matt, was injured in a shooting. Toni appears on the show to ask for support. Security cam footage of the shooting is played, showing a heavily disguised man ringing the doorbell, asking if Toni is there, and getting shot by Matt and firing back Toni stresses that she has refused to participate in the reopening of the case, wanting to move on from her mistakes. Joey is notably absent for three episodes. It is revealed in the following episode that Matt has died from his injuries. At the end of the season, G.Amato promises Tim that he will receive a 2018 Dodge Charger if AmatoCon is a success.
This season was accompanied by an audio edition across multiple streaming platforms. The first few episodes feature loudly blaring advertisements placed mid-sentence during the show and subsequent episodes feature all manner of audio problems to the point where ads are broadcast on top of the episode's audio and multiple ads will play simultaneously, making unintelligible noise. The final episode just features a spot for AmatonCon that runs on repeat for 21minutes.
On the last day of AmatoCon, Tim gives a confusing and ultimately aborted keynote address on the “gift” of his disorder, in front of a sparse and indifferent audience. He teases and antagonises Joey throughout the night, and holds an in memoriam segment for Matt, alongside Toni, who relapses into alcoholism again with Tim. Gregg, relegated to a VFA booth to the side of the main stage, uses a new “Movie Links” segment to propose to Kaili, gifting her VHS tapes linked in their titles by the theme of a wedding. Upon gifting her a copy of Marry Me!, Kaili escapes backstage, leaving a visibly upset Gregg crouched behind his stall. Tim emerges victorious in his battle of the bands against Dekkar, after which Axiom and Manuel make peace with Tim, while casting out Corwin. At the finale, G. Amato performs the “quality of mercy” speech from The Merchant of Venice, and sings a hymn. He judges Tim’s involvement in the convention to be disappointing, and so punishes him by not relinquishing the Charger. In a fit of rage Tim, followed by Joey and Gregg, steals the keys and tries to enter the vehicle outside the convention center. Joey temporarily stuns Gregg and attacks Tim, who staggers back into the convention center with his face covered in blood, tells Toni that the Amatos are responsible for Matt’s death, and collapses to the ground.
Production
Heidecker has stated that On Cinema was started out of a desire to mock the podcasting community.[17] The first episode was recorded on the set of The Comedy, where Heidecker and Turkington were working together, after Heidecker proposed the idea between takes.[10] In April 2017, On Cinema initiated a Patreon page for funding, most of it going to the Oscar specials, with some of the higher options including receiving producer credits, walk-on roles for the Oscar specials, or live custom Skype reviews from Gregg Turkington.[18]
In 2013, the On Cinema Film Guide app was released, featuring the voices of Turkington and Heidecker reviewing over 17,000 films.[19]
The series moved premieres to Adult Swim's online live streams in 2017, with the series continuing to be posted on YouTube on a delay. The Adult Swim streams later picked up a fan-show series, Big Unhappy Family, in 2019, as a companion to season 11 and Mister America. However, in late 2020, following the COVID-19 pandemic and layoffs that shuttered the Adult Swim streams, it was announced that the show would move from Adult Swim's platforms to HEI Network, an independent streaming service created for the series.[1]
Reception
The show has a dedicated cult following of fans who interact with the storylines via social media, often taking sides as "GreggHeads" or "TimHeads" in the frequent personal conflicts between the hosts which are often only tangentially, if at all, related to films or cinema.[10] During the annual live Oscar special, Tim and Gregg both frequently provide interactive elements via online polls for fans to vote on. This cult following is especially found on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter, the latter through Gregg and Tim's respective profiles, of which Gregg has completely devoted to the persona of his alter-ego. Heidecker and Turkington have also appeared in character on the podcasts Kreative Kontrol with Vish Khanna and The Best Show in 2015 and 2017.
Heidecker and Turkington also started Decker-Con, where new episodes of Decker are shown to fans and the cast appears as their On Cinema characters to field questions.[10]
For "The Trial", Heidecker and Turkington upended the traditional review aspect of the series, and staged an elaborate mock event where Tim's character was on trial for murder, which lasted over a week. It received acclaim from observers, some of whom called it "brilliant" and "ambitious."[12][20][21][22]
In 2022, the series garnered increased, focused critical acclaim in the podcast On The Funny, a comedy criticism podcast hosted by screenwriter Chris Matheson and critic Jacob Balcom. In the podcast series, the duo closely analyse every aspect the On Cinema universe, attest to the genius of Tim Heidecker and Gregg Turkington, and argue that the series is not just critically underrated, but is in fact one of the most ambitious, complex and funniest comedy projects ever filmed.
Neil Hamburger is a standup comedian and singer character created and portrayed by Australian-American entertainer Gregg Turkington. Distinguished for his misanthropic jokes and anti-comedy style, Turkington has released a number of albums as Hamburger and has appeared as the character in various films, television shows, and other media. In 2015, the act inspired the feature-length film Entertainment, which stars Turkington as a "variant" of the character.
Timothy Richard Heidecker is an American comedian, writer, director, actor, and musician. Along with Eric Wareheim, he is a member of the comedy duo Tim & Eric.
Joseph Estévez, sometimes credited as Joe Phelan, is an American actor and director. He is the younger brother of actor Martin Sheen and the uncle of Emilio Estevez, Charlie Sheen, Renée Estevez, and Ramon Estevez.
Gregg Turkington is an American comedian, entertainer, actor, musician and writer. He is known for his performances as Neil Hamburger, a stand-up comedian persona he developed in the 1990s. Alongside Tim Heidecker, Turkington also stars as a fictionalized version of himself on the comedic web series On Cinema (2011–). In addition, he formed one-half of the band Zip Code Rapists and has collaborated on numerous projects with musicians including Trey Spruance.
Mister America is a 2019 American mockumentary film directed by Eric Notarnicola and starring Tim Heidecker. The film is an extension of the On Cinema universe, in which Heidecker portrays a fictionalized version of himself who reviews films with fellow comedian Gregg Turkington; the film follows Heidecker as he runs for the office of San Bernardino County district attorney, attempting to unseat the incumbent D.A. that previously attempted to imprison him in a mass murder charge. The film has received mixed reviews from critics.
Tim & Eric are an American comedy duo consisting of Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim. They are the creators and stars of the Adult Swim television series Tom Goes to the Mayor, Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!, Check It Out! with Dr. Steve Brule, Tim & Eric's Bedtime Stories, and Beef House.
Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! is an American sketch comedy television series created by Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim for Cartoon Network's nighttime programming block Adult Swim. It premiered on February 11, 2007 and originally ran until May 2, 2010. The show features surreal, dark and often satirical humor, public-access television-style musical acts, bizarre faux-commercials with a unique editing and special effects style by Doug Lussenhop to make the show appear off-kilter.
Special Entertainment is a Milwaukee based media production company established in 2003 by Bobby Ciraldo and Andrew Swant.
Check It Out! with Dr. Steve Brule is an American comedy television series starring John C. Reilly as Dr. Steve Brule. The show is a spin-off of Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!, originating in a segment called Brule's Rules. The series premiered on Cartoon Network's late-night programming block, Adult Swim, on May 16, 2010.
Mark Proksch is an American comedian and character actor. He is best known for acting in the television series The Office, Better Call Saul, Dream Corp LLC, What We Do in the Shadows and as a fictionalized version of himself in the On Cinema universe.
Patrick James Alverson Jr. is an American film director, screenwriter and musician, living in Richmond, Virginia. His films have been characterized by their confrontational nature and unconventional dramatic structure.
The Comedy is a 2012 American drama film co-written, co-edited, and directed by Rick Alverson, and starring Tim Heidecker, Eric Wareheim, James Murphy, and Gregg Turkington. The film was executive produced by David Gordon Green, Danny McBride, Jody Hill, Darius Van Arman, and Larry Fessenden.
Entertainment is a 2015 American drama film directed by Rick Alverson, starring Gregg Turkington, Tye Sheridan, and John C. Reilly. It is loosely based on Turkington's Neil Hamburger character. The plot follows a stand-up comedian as he performs in various locations where the audience is either hostile or indifferent to him. Alverson, Turkington and Tim Heidecker co-wrote the film.
Decker is an American comedy web series and series created by Tim Heidecker and Gregg Turkington. The show is a web spinoff/tie-in to the series On Cinema at the Cinema and began on July 17, 2014. Many recurring jokes and the personas and mutual antipathies expressed by Decker and Turkington carry over from the relationship of the "real" actors, Heidecker and Turkington, in On Cinema.
Zac Holtzman is an American guitarist and co-founder of the band Dengue Fever. He also played Dr. San in the web series On Cinema, At The Cinema.
Eric Notarnicola is an American screenwriter, director, producer, and musician. He is best known for his work in comedy that intersects reality.
Phil Hanley is a Canadian stand-up comedian and actor. He had a half-hour special on Comedy Central in 2015 and released an hour-long stand-up special Ooh La La on his YouTube channel in 2022. Time Out described him as a "master of crowdwork".
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