Hulu’s new sci-fi bonanza melds enough genres together that its stars describe it as two movies in one.
Written and directed by BenDavid Grabinski in his first feature effort since Happily, Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice is a mix of sci-fi, action, comedy and gangster movie. The film centers on Vince Vaughn as Nick, a gangster who travels back in time to one fateful night in which a series of events led to the death of his friend and fellow gangster, James Marsden’s Mike, while also impacting their relationships with the woman they love, Eiza González’s Alice, leading to a wild night of self-reflections and piles of dead bodies.
Alongside Vaughn, Marsden and González, Grabinski has assembled a star-studded ensemble roster for the film, including three-time Emmy winner Keith David, Scream 7‘s Jimmy Tatro, The Rig‘s Emily Hampshire, Tron: Ares‘ Arturo Castro, Moral Kombat‘s Lewis Tan, Sonic the Hedgehog‘s Ben Schwartz and Barry‘s Stephen Root. Ahead of its March 27 streaming premiere, Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice made its world premiere at SXSW, where it has garnered generally positive reviews from critics.
In honor of its festival showing, ScreenRant‘s Ash Crossan interviewed Vince Vaughn, Eiza González, Jimmy Tatro and BenDavid Grabinski to discuss Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice in our SXSW media suite. When asked about how his character fits into the mix of the film, Tatro actually cited Jimmy Boy as being an example of how “it was almost like [Keith David and I] were in a separate movie,” describing their scenes as being “a parallel story” to the time travel shenanigans of the titular duo:
Jimmy Tatro: It’s a really funny dynamic between him and me, because he’s just got such gravitas, and his voice is so serious and intimidating that when you’re just kind of riffing with him, and he says a silly thing coming out of his mouth, it just sounds so insane, because his voice is so intense. So to put him up against Jimmy Boy, that’s just kind of throwing all this nonsense at him. It was a fun dynamic to play with, but it was also interesting to try to figure out what they were doing and how it worked against what we were doing.
Vaughn chimed in by expressing Jimmy Boy and Sosa’s relationship as being a “really emotional” one to watch, as he found himself “really loving this father-son” dynamic between them. He also agreed with Tatro that those characters’ relationship was the perfect highlight of the unique tonal mix Grabinski captured in the film, because “through the comedy and through the actions of the characters,” audiences still get to see “a real bond” between Jimmy Boy and Sosa.
When presented with the idea that the pair weren’t aware they were being hilarious, Grabinski shared that David was approaching his performance as Sosa from a comedic foundation, describing it as “my favorite thing” to watch during production. He even recalled moments in which “I’d come up with a funny thing, and I’d pitch it to him from across the room,” to which the Community alum would “think about it and then start laughing really hard“:
BenDavid Grabinski: Then, I was like, “Okay, that’s going to work, because I don’t even have to explain to him why this is fun.” He always understood the joke, and it’s one of those things where the more they would get rolling on a scene, I’d be like, “Oh, this is really what they’re getting at.” So I would kind of find a punctuation point for it to have him deliver to Jimmy, and it always worked.
González went on to praise Castro as also being “so funny” in Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice, and being another great example of how the movie’s cast were “living parallel lives” during production as they essentially starred in two very different kinds of films. Praising Castro and the side characters as being “an incredible foil“ to the rest of the film’s sci-fi elements, she also celebrated the writer/director for his “amazing job balancing the tone” of when to cut to these side stories.
Turning back to Tatro and Grabinski for a scene involving a monologue from David, and pondering how he got through it without laughing, the writer/director actually revealed that its origin was from a more dramatic place, as “my cat died in prep” and he found himself “really distraught” about their passing. However, as he turned to penning the monologue for David, and making it about his cat by using Tatro’s character in his place, Grabinski found it to be a “very charming” moment that also “made it funnier“:
BenDavid Grabinski: It came from a real place of drama, but the way that Jimmy reacts to it is, to me, the funniest thing in the world, just him slowly hearing Keith David give this long monologue, internalizing it, and he has a thing where he says, “Like a duck,” that I did not write that will make me laugh until the day I die. I don’t even know where it came from, but I always think that scene is just him saying, “Like a duck,” which, out of context, doesn’t mean anything, but you’ll think it’s funny later.
Grabinski Wanted Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice To Be About “Emotionally Complicated” Characters, Along With Being A Fun Time
ScreenRant: Who is Future Nick, and who is Present Nick?
Vince Vaughn: Well, I think it’s what BenDavid said. What’s fun is it’s just someone who’s gone through some experiences and learned from them, and you get a chance to kind of go back and try to address it and handle it in a more elegant way. So it’s just a little bit more wisdom on one than the other.
ScreenRant: When you were approached about playing double, what was your reaction to that approach, and what excited you most about playing opposite yourself?
Vince Vaughn: We talked a little bit about it, just how to do that. BenDavid had some really good ideas going in. It was designed in that you wanted both characters to be — even though one is in a place where they’re not making the best decisions, you’re hoping he does, you’re hoping he changes. And so there’s an emotional toll that is at the center of the movie that involves our relationship and [James] Marsden. What I love about the movie is you have a group of friends who care about each other, but have not made the best of choices. And so, I think for all of our characters, there’s sort of this catalyst of the one Nick going back and actually everybody gets to kind of address things. Everyone gets to do better.
BenDavid Grabinski: II want it to be about a bunch of adults where it’s emotionally complicated. It’s not just good people and bad people. And it’s just people who have a lot of complicated life experiences, dealing with each other and growing and making this a little messy in a way I like.
ScreenRant: I have to say, Vince Vaughn and James Marsden together, that felt like you guys have always been that. It was such a good pairing.
Vince Vaughn: All of us had a lot of fun with Marsden. Such a fun, good, funny, great [guy]. He’s been so good for so long.
BenDavid Grabinski: But that’s the most fun thing about casting is you cast Vince first, and then you think, “Who seems really fun with him?,” from everyone else’s perspective. You’re sort of just building these different energies that feel fun and fresh. And it just instantly felt like those two together in a movie feels really fun and interesting, and it’s the same with everybody. It’s just like, “That seems fun.” It’s very instinctual. It’s a really good mix of people and personalities in ways you haven’t seen before.
ScreenRant: And I really love Alice. Tell me about her and what her relationship with Nick and Nick is.
Eiza González: Yeah, I think Alice is just a box of chocolates, in a way. You never know what you’re going to get with her, really. She’s a firecracker and a woman with conviction, but also kind of fun, aloof. I’ve found the interesting part of the dynamics between both Nicks — we all have these relationships that we’ve been in, like, “What would it have been like if we went back 10 years and tried it again?” And yet she sort of has an idea of what she wants with one relationship, and she’s fully convinced of where she’s going, and then all of a sudden, life is throwing her a curveball and making her rethink her decisions. I think that is, as BenDavid said, very rare to have in one single two-hour movie, versus seven seasons of a show. So, I found that moving forward [idea] quite interesting, and adding layers to the dynamics. Therefore, the relationship with one Nick to the other is different. There’s really nice moments where you’re like, “Yeah, you get me.” And you’re like, “Wait, you didn’t get me back in the day.” And then her taking it out on the older Nick. So, it also gave leeway to a lot of good comedy, as well.
ScreenRant: I want to just mention our mutual great friend, Scott Wampler, that you have a tribute to in the movie. I did not expect to start crying immediately when I saw that, because I forgot about it.
BenDavid Grabinski: Yeah, my very first day of prep in Winnipeg, our mutual friend passed away, and he also actually knew the head of the studio, Steve Asbell, and I named a hospital in the movie after him, which felt like the right move. The problem, though, is that when I first watched the scene in the edit, it’s one of those things where it’s like — I don’t know, I think it’s a nice way to immortalize people, to just have some weird name of building after them in your movie instead of just saying, “Dedicated to [Blank].” So that’s my tip for other filmmakers, name a building after your friend.
Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice premieres on Hulu and Disney+ on March 27!
- Release Date
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March 27, 2026
- Runtime
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107 Minutes
- Director
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BenDavid Grabinski
- Writers
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BenDavid Grabinski
- Producers
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Andrew Lazar