Imagine what would happen if one of the Play School hosts went through extreme emotional trauma midway through filming. Or if one of The Wiggles went absolutely buck wild while on tour. Or even if the iconic voice behind Elmo just went ‘fuck it, I can’t do it anymore’. That’s the basic premise of Jim Carrey‘s new Stan-exclusive drama comedy series Kidding.
Your favourite ’90s comedian plays Jeff, the man who has portrayed Mr. Pickles on Mr. Pickles’ Puppet Time for 30 odd years. Jeff’s ability to capture the hearts and minds of the children of America for the past three decades lies in his inherent optimistic, happy-go-lucky attitude that he displays both on and off screen.
Carrey as the complex Jeff (Mr. Pickles)
But when his son dies in a freak car accident, Jeff finds himself struggling to maintain his happy persona in both his personal and professional life.
While Carrey’s classic comedic nature is present throughout Kidding, perhaps the most compelling aspect of the show is the family dynamic and how it explores the different ways in which people deal with grief.
Greer plays Jeff’s grief-stricken ex-wife
While Jeff tries his hardest to mask his emotions behind Mr. Pickles, his ex-wife Jill (Judy Greer) bares the brunt of the pain which results in some extremely poignant moments.
Jeff’s extremely practical father and producer of his show Seb (Frank Langella) tries to navigate his son’s unfolding emotional trauma while managing him professionally, including refusing Jeff’s suggestion to introduce real life topics like death into the light and fluffy program.
Meanwhile his sister and the show’s head puppet maker Deirdre (Catherine Keener) is dealing with a family crisis of her own.
Langella (left) and Keener (right) play Jeff’s father/producer and puppet maker/sister
During his appearance at the Television Critics Association, Carrey explained what drew him to this unique role.
“The search for identity is a theme that’s always been attractive to me,” he explains. “There’s definitely something in this piece that calls to me.”
He goes on to say that the show explores the idea of “trying to hang on to the idea of the self,” a concept that the actor is all too familiar with which, in my opinion, is what makes this series all the more intriguing.
Jeff on the set of Mr. Pickles’ Puppet Time
The premiere episode of Kidding is now streaming exclusively on Stan with the second episode to follow on Sunday September 9 and the third on Sunday Sept 23, after which episodes will be dropping weekly.
Cop the full trailer below:
