Comedy is all about timing—but then again, so is a great party. And last night, some of the biggest names in the business found themselves at the Museum of Modern Art at the exact right time for the Cinema Society’s screening of The Comedian. Starring Robert De Niro and directed by Taylor Hackford, the film—which has been described as part comedy and part drama—tells the story of Jackie Burke, a has-been sitcom star trying to resuscitate his comedic career. “Bob De Niro is not a comic,” Hackford said. “He’s a really great actor, but he worships comedians.” The crowd was a mix of both: costars Danny DeVito, Leslie Mann, and Edie Falco, as well as Helen Mirren, Judd Apatow, Trevor Noah, and Jesse Tyler Ferguson all came out to show their support. They had more than a few good laughs. “[De Niro] worked very hard to be as believable and authentic as he is onscreen,” Hackford said. “We must have seen 50 different comics, before he chose his style.”

Hackford was joined by wife, Mirren, who made a high-low fashion statement in a Dolce & Gabbana dress paired with a canary-yellow Zara coat and a Zara faux-fur stole draped over the top. “It’s lovely to wear a beautiful designer from head to toe, but I’ve been longing to wear this coat!” Mirren said. On this occasion, Mirren was playing the part of supportive spouse, but she revealed she wears another hat in their relationship: “I’m the funny one. Oh, definitely. Absolutely,” Mirren said. “He refuses to laugh at my jokes, but I’m definitely the funny one.”

With the New York City comedy scene as the film’s backdrop, The Friars Club was a natural fit for the after-party. The private space boasts a membership of many comedians and has hosted celebrity roasts over the years. Upstairs in the Barbra Streisand Room, guests sipped on themed Avión tequila cocktails—a pick of Jackie’s Comeback, the Friars’ Nightcap, and the Comedian’s Cocktail—in between small bites and conversation lasting into the wee hours. When posed with the question, Who would you most like to roast? Noah took the political route: “I hope he doesn’t skip out of it, but it would be Donald Trump at the White House Correspondents’ dinner.” DeVito, on the other hand, was quick to offer a joke: “It depends—sometimes I’m in the mood for vegetables, sometimes chicken, and sometimes fish.”

 

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Source: Vogue