A simple search on Google or YouTube with the phrase “Florida Man” brings up a myriad of unbelievable stories from Florida. The Florida Man phenomenon is nowhere close to being figured out, but the stories keep coming. A new HBO series reenacts some of those stories. It’s Florida, Man combines interview-style scenes with reenactments by popular actors to take the viewer into the wild stories of the Florida Man. The series features names like Anna Faris, Jake Johnson, Sam Richardson, Jon Gries, Juliette Lewis, Ego Nwodin, Randall Park, Bobby Lee, and Simon Rex, all reenacting a Florida Man (or woman) story. Per the show’s official synopsis, each episode of It’s Florida, Man focuses on a Floridian who “shares an anecdote you wouldn’t believe unless it’s reenacted by your favorite actors and comedians as they lip sync the, sometimes bizarre, dialogue.”
It’s Florida, Man is created by Jeff Tomsic, who also serves as the showrunner and executive producer. “What you’re about to see might be dangerous, petty, misguided, and most definitely stupid,” a narrator says in the show’s official trailer below. “But, it’s also all true … sort of,” the narrator continues as wild scenes appear on the screen. The trailer features some interviews with people familiar with the concept of Florida’s wild stories. From a man wrestling an alligator to a feud between a mermaid, a witch, and a corrupt police officer, these stories are too wild to be true. But in Florida, that’s just another Tuesday.
‘It’s Florida, Man’ Is a Love Letter to a Wild State
While it is easy to ridicule the subjects of these stories, Tomsic was gunning for something more profound. ”Florida is a beautiful place, and it attracts a lot of invasive species: pythons, iguanas, and wackjobs,” he told IndieWire. He talked about trying to add some depth to the stories, saying,
“The majority of ‘Florida Man’ stuff you see is actually sort of mean-spirited and is often poking fun at people or events that on are pretty sad or unfortunate. It’s just clickbait. We tried to approach this show with a sense of affection, searching for optimism, looking for unique perspectives in unlikely places and trying to listen to people you normally wouldn’t hear from on television — although we were definitely looking for craziness.
“The story selection process was quite long because we wanted people and stories that made you first think, ‘This person is insane!’ But by the end, maybe made you think, ‘Maybe I’m the insane one. Maybe this person — this witch, this mermaid or this man who had an arm bitten off— maybe they’re not crazy. Maybe they’re the ones who have it all figured out.'”
Recently, pop star Lana Del Ray married an alligator tour guide, Jeremy Dufrene, from the Sunshine State. If the show does well, a second season might explore Dufrene‘s place of work in one episode. “All I know is I’d sure like to go on one of that gentleman’s [Del Rey’s husband] swamp tours [and] I’d personally love to find the Skunk Ape of the Everglades,” Tomsic said. “Even though It’s Florida, Man is nuts, it’s genuinely meant to be a love letter to this fascinating part of the country,” he concluded.
The six-part series premieres on October 18 on HBO and streams on Max. Watch the trailer above.
via Collider