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Hot Rod is a 2007 American comedy film directed by Akiva Schaffer (in his directorial debut) and written by Pam Brady. The film stars Andy Samberg as amateur accident-prone stuntman Rod Kimble, whose stepfather, Frank (Ian McShane), continuously mocks and disrespects him. When Frank becomes ill, Rod raises money for his heart operation by executing his largest stunt yet. The film also stars Jorma Taccone, Sissy Spacek, Will Arnett, Danny McBride, Isla Fisher and Bill Hader. The film was initially drafted by Pam Brady (who retains full writing credit) as a vehicle for Saturday Night Live star Will Ferrell, but the project never commenced. Lorne Michaels convinced Paramount to let The Lonely Island, which was gaining fame for its work on SNL, take over the film. The group subsequently rewrote the movie with a heavy emphasis on offbeat surreal humor. It was shot in Vancouver in the summer of 2006. The score is by former Yes guitarist Trevor Rabin, and the soundtrack features several songs by the Swedish rock band Europe. Paramount Pictures released Hot Rod on August 3, 2007. It was a box-office failure, grossing only $14 million on a $25 million budget. As its producers predicted, it received mixed reviews, with critics criticizing the film's script and humor. It has become a popular cult film on home video. Plot Throughout his life, Rod Kimble has believed his dead father was a successful and respectable stuntman working for Evel Knievel. He aspires to follow in his father's footsteps and become a famous stuntman himself. Meanwhile, his stepfather, Frank, does not respect Rod as a man, often going out of his way to beat him in sparring sessions and mocking his stuntman dreams. Rod makes many attempts to land jumps with his Tomos moped, most of them unsuccessful. After another failed jump attempt at a public pool, he returns home and learns that Frank is in urgent need of a heart transplant that the family's health insurance will not cover. Angered at the thought of Frank dying without getting a chance to gain his respect, Rod runs into the woods to let out his fury and tumbles down a steep hill, where he sees an inspirational billboard and gets an idea. Rod quickly meets with his childhood friends Rico and Dave and his half-brother Kevin, and tells them he plans to jump over 15 school buses and use the proceeds to fund Frank's surgery. Later, Denise, his neighbor and love interest, joins his team. To promote his stunt and raise funds, Rod works parties, corporate get-togethers, and other events, performing activities such as taping pillows to his body and having a washing machine suspended by a crane swing to hit him. One day, he gets curious about what Kevin is working on as he hears music coming from his computer. Kevin says he was experimenting with editing footage, and shows Rod the video. Impressed by Kevin's work, Rod gets the idea to release a stuntman film to raise money. Kevin releases the movie using his footage of Rod's stunts and sells several tickets to the screening, where the audience laughs at Rod as the film depicts his failed training attempts. Rod gets angry and throws the theater's projector out of a window, smashing the projectionist's car below. He gives the projectionist all the money he has raised to cover the damages and avoid arrest. Upset, he returns home, where his mother reveals that his biological father was not the stuntman he thought he was. Humiliated, Rod quits the team and his dream to beat Frank, despite his friends' objections, but is reinvigorated when Dave gives him advice that inspires him to apologize to Kevin. As Kevin accepts his apology, he reveals that Rod's stunt footage has grown popular online and that a show on a local AM radio station, hosted by Barry Pasternak, has offered to cover the planned jump's expenses. Rod gets his friends back together, and they start setting up for the jump. On the day of the event, his friends give him a new suit, a rock representing Rico's extensive pyrotechnic work, and a motorbike. He also receives a kiss from Denise, who broke up with Jonathan, her insensitive and callous boyfriend. As Rod jumps off the ramp, his bike's speed enables him to jump over the buses, but the motorcycle smashes through a stage and goes flying. Rod lands squarely on the ground and has an unconscious out-of-body experience. When he wakes, Rod, with Kevin and Denise's help, triumphantly gets up to applause and sees that the donations have accumulated over $50,000. Six months later, Rod once again spars with Frank, finally gaining the upper hand and Frank's respect. After the credits, Rod is seen bowing down to his moped with the sunset in the background. Cast Andy Samberg as Rod Kimble Jorma Taccone as Kevin Powell Bill Hader as Dave McLean Danny McBride as Rico Brown Isla Fisher as Denise Harris Sissy Spacek as Marie Powell Ian McShane as Frank Powell Will Arnett as Jonathan Ault Chris Parnell as Barry Pasternak Chester Tam as Richardson Mark Acheson as Homeless Dude Alvin Sanders as Furious Boss Akiva Schaffer as Derek Britt Irvin as Cathy Fay Brittany Tiplady as Maggie McLean Andrew Moxham as Sullivan Tom Queens of the Stone Age as Gown Production Hot Rod was written by Pam Brady, a former South Park writer, as a project for Will Ferrell during his tenure at Saturday Night Live. The project never commenced, and the script remained in limbo at Paramount Pictures for several years. In the meantime, The Lonely Island was hired at SNL in 2005, and by the end of the year, it had a breakthrough with its short "Lazy Sunday." The sketch, an "SNL Digital Short," received millions of views online (especially on the then-fledgling YouTube), making the trio, especially Samberg, stars. Lorne Michaels, SNL's creator, convinced Paramount to allow the troupe to direct and star in the film. The trio had no prior experience with feature-length films, but Michaels had confidence, envisioning the film as a "different generation's comedy." The studio wanted the film to remain less coarse to obtain a PG-13 rating from the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), like DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story (2004). Initially reluctant, as the script was designed for Ferrell and the summer filming schedule was less than ideal, Paramount authorized a rewrite, allowing the writers to incorporate bizarre, offbeat humor and absurdist comedy. The script had to "match their standards"—"another way of saying, 'just dumb it down'", said Schaffer. This involved deleting comedy designed for Ferrell (which Samberg called "so well-written") and replacing it with their own. "We didn't want it to seem like I was doing a Ferrell impression," said Samberg. The result was a balance between "weird" humor and what Paramount considered accessible. Samberg was inspired by Wet Hot American Summer, which was, according to him, "designed to fuck around with what's expected from a movie." Many jokes from the film deemed "too weird" were cut, including a sc.... Discover the Rod Island popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Rod Island books.