Idiots (2026) Review!!

Synopsis – Two rock-bottom drivers transport a wealthy teen to rehab, but their simple job spirals into a chaotic journey of drugs, danger, and crime as their passenger derails their plans.

My Take – As a performer, Macon Blair has long excelled as a reliable character actor and occasional leading man, most memorably in Blue Ruin (2014). As a director, however, his track record has been far less consistent, ranging from the sharp, offbeat charm of I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore (2017) to last year’s messy and excessive The Toxic Avenger (2025) remake. Unfortunately, his latest effort falls closer to the latter.

Previously titled The Shitheads during its Sundance premiere before being softened following IFC‘s acquisition, the film aims for the same kind of mid-budget, raunchy road-trip comedies that flourished in the 2000s, blending shock value with irreverent humor. The frenetic R-rated comedy barrels forward at a relentless pace, throwing together bumbling criminals, a botched kidnapping, rampant drug use, nihilistic extremists, and a steady stream of self-inflicted injuries.

At its best, it’s an enjoyably chaotic ride elevated by strong chemistry between its leads. At its worst, it veers into territory that feels overly dark, gross, or tonally scattered. Yes, tare genuinely entertaining moments throughout, and the cast delivers solid performances.

Still, a tighter script with fewer celebrity pop-ins and more focus on character development would have served the film better. As writer-director Blair never seems to decide whether these characters are meant to be redeemable or simply reprehensible, and charisma alone can only carry a story so far. Eventually, even the most absurd characters need some emotional grounding. As a result, the film left me groaning far more often than it made me laugh.

The story follows two down-on-their-luck screw-ups, Davis (O’Shea Jackson Jr.) and Mark (Dave Franco), who have both recently lost their jobs and reluctantly team up for a lucrative under-the-table gig transporting troubled teens to rehabilitation facilities. Their latest assignment seems straightforward enough: escort the volatile and deeply antisocial Sheridan Kimberly (Mason Thames), the wealthy son of a powerful family, to rehab.

However, it quickly becomes apparent that Sheridan is anything but an ordinary passenger. A manipulative young sociopath with a devoted online following, he possesses an uncanny ability to charm authority figures, exploit situations to his advantage, and constantly plot his escape. As the journey spirals out of control, Sheridan leaves a trail of chaos in his wake, dragging Davis and Mark into one increasingly disastrous situation after another.

What begins as a simple transport job soon turns into a wildly unpredictable ordeal that pushes both men to the limits of their patience, competence, and sanity. Here, director Blair wastes little time establishing just how spectacularly foolish Davis is, introducing him as a former parishioner who lost his position after taking a group of children to a screening of Antichrist (2009). Mark proves to be his perfect counterpart, approaching life from the opposite direction while displaying an equally impressive lack of judgment. On paper, all the ingredients for a memorable old-school comedy are present.

Unfortunately, the film never settles on what it actually wants to be. Its uneasy blend of gross-out humor, graphic violence, drug-fueled chaos, and dark comedy often feels at odds with itself. For every joke that lands, there’s another moment that leaves you wondering what exactly the film is trying to accomplish. As a writer, Blair‘s comedic sensibilities range from explosive diarrhea gags to an endless stream of “your mama” jokes, some of which genuinely got a laugh out of me.

The arrival of Kiernan Shipka’s Irina, a fearless Eastern European stripper who gets swept into the madness, injects fresh energy into the proceedings and raises the chaos to another level. Yet despite the constant escalation, the film never finds a coherent narrative through line. What made the great gross-out comedies of the ’90s work was their ability to balance outrageous humor with memorable characters and a story that kept audiences invested. Here, that balance is missing.

My biggest issue is that I never connected with any of the characters. Unlikable protagonists can work, but only when they’re compelling enough to hold your attention. Here, as the situation spirals further out of control, it’s difficult to feel invested because none of the characters are given enough depth or development. The narrative hints at something more complex beneath Davis’ calm exterior, particularly during a terrific scene where he finally erupts at Mark, but those flashes of character insight are too infrequent.

Sheridan is an even greater problem. Mason Thames has proven himself a talented young actor, but the script gives him little to work with beyond being obnoxious and manipulative. The story appears uninterested in exploring the character beyond his worst qualities, making him too detestable to earn any sympathy, even when events eventually turn against him. As a result, Sheridan remains both frustratingly one-note and strangely underdeveloped. Even the film’s existential closing voiceover feels less like a meaningful reflection on the story and more like an attempt to manufacture depth at the last minute.

Performance-wise, O’Shea Jackson Jr. brings genuine vulnerability and charm to Davis, making him easy to watch even when the character’s arc never reaches a satisfying payoff. Dave Franco clearly relishes playing the kind of dim-witted, self-destructive troublemaker that executive producers Danny McBride and Jody Hill have been perfecting for years.

Kiernan Shipka steals nearly every scene she’s in, while Lynn Wanlass makes a strong impression in a smaller role. Elsewhere, Peter Dinklage and Nicholas Braun enthusiastically embrace the film’s heightened absurdity, delivering the kind of gloriously over-the-top performances the material demands. On the whole, ‘Idiots‘ is an intermittently funny buddy comedy whose chemistry can’t quite overcome its scattershot narrative and excessively crude humor.