While it may not be as subversive as it might yearn to be or perhaps thinks it is, the new film, Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass turns out to be an entertaining – yet occasionally raunchy – take on the enduring family classic The Wizard of Oz (1939).
Beginning with the introduction of small-town hairdresser Gail Daughtry (Zoey Deutch) – whose name is actually an anagrammatic of Dorothy Gale, the protagonist of the aforementioned “Wizard of Oz” – as she sets off on an impulsive adventure with her friend Otto (Miles Gutierrez-Riley) to Los Angeles where, after visiting with a psychic, she decides that the only way to save her pending marriage after her husband-to-be, Tom (Michael Cassidy), sleeps with his “celebrity pass” on a whim, is to travel to the West Coast and seek out a rendezvous with her own “celebrity pass” – Mr. Jon Hamm.
Accompanying Gale and Otto on this journey are a few friends they collect along the way, which include: a failed paparazzo (Ken Marino), a former talent agency assistant (Ben Wang), and actor John Slattery as himself. This group functions as surrogates for the beloved characters from Oz – e.g. the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion – as they make their way through Los Angeles to locate and plead their case to Hamm. Sly references – and some not so much – to the original film are displayed in abundance.
Director David Wain, working from a script penned by himself and actor Ken Marino (who plays the previously mentioned failed paparazzo), keeps the film moving at a brisk pace that helps the comedy grow organically from scene to scene rather than introducing one escapade after another. The appearance of a character like Frank the Mailman (Fred Melamed) as the narrator of the story (and perhaps stand-in for Glinda the Good Witch of the North) provides a throughline that allows the plot to progress easily from act to act without forcing the viewer to make any concessions for the narrative to work.
Music courtesy Craig Wedren allows the film to segue from scene to scene effortlessly along with the crisp editing provided by John Daigle. Overall, the film has the feel of many coming-of-age comedies of the same ilk, and that is captured by Kevin Atkinson’s cinematography. Overall, the film feels like an ode to the sex comedies of the eighties while simultaneously trying to rewrite the genre into something more formative and tangible.
Ken Marino, John Slattery, Miles Gutierrez-Riley, Ben Wang, and Zoey Deutch in “Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass.”
As Gail, Zoey Deutch does most of the heavy lifting throughout the film and is up to the challenge when allowed to shine. Her cadre of companions – Gutierrez-Riley, Slattery, Marino, and Wang – also deliver their own moments of greatness as they are introduced. When he finally appears, the elusive Jon Hamm, also gives one of the finest self-parodying performances ever put on film. As his and Gail’s stories intertwine, the narrative gracefully moves towards a satisfying conclusion that wraps the tale up in a wonderfully pristine package.
Although some may approach the R-rated Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass expecting something far more subversive and raunchy than they ultimately receive, they will ultimately be rewarded with a wickedly clever adaptation of The Wizard of Oz for contemporary audiences that showcases a number of talented performers having what seems to be the time of their lives making one of the more savvy versions of the source material yet.
WHERE TO WATCH: (powered by JustWatch)
| Producer: | Ken Marino, David Wain, Anthony Bregman, Peter Cron, Crystine Zhang, Charles Zhong |
| Release Date: | July 10, 2026 |
| Running Time: | 93 minutes |
| Starring: | Jon Hamm, Zoey Deutch, John Slattery, Ken Marino, Miles Gutierrez-Riley, Ben Wang, Sabrina Impacciatore, Joe Lo Truglio, Mather Zickel, Tobie Windham, Fred Melamed, Michael Cassidy |
| Writer: | David Wain, Ken Marino |
| MPAA Rating: | R (for sexual content, violence/bloody images and language) |
| Director: | David Wain |
| Distributor: | Sony Pictures Classics |
| External Info: | Official Site / TikTok / Facebook / Instagram / X (Twitter) / #GailDaughtry #GDATCSP |
