SAN DIEGO -- Jason Bateman, who stars in "Extract," Mike Judge's film out today, joined the writer-director last month at Comic-Con International, representing a movie that has nothing to do with comic books.
But that's OK, the thousands gathered before them were Judge's people.
You could hear members of the audience quoting freely from his animated series "Beavis and Butt-Head" and cult film "Office Space." And he's got at least some geek cred when you throw in the futuristic "Idiocracy."
Bateman, like Judge making his first appearance before the huge Hall H audience, said he was delighted to be in "Extract" because it's the kind of movie he would want to watch.
"I think what makes Mike laugh is what makes some of the more recent bosses I've had laugh, which I really like," Bateman said. "Mike's got an incredibly subtle, sophisticated sense of humor. He doesn't beg the audience to laugh. He doesn't pander to the audience. He never hits anybody in the face with a pie. There's no winking.
"He will blow a guy's balls off, but he draws the line there."
Bateman got the big laughs and his co-star, Mila Kunis, got the big oohs and aahs, but fans also came to show affection for Judge's celebration of the absurd lives of working people. In "Office Space," for instance, a miserable worker plots against his company as it's downsizing. In "Idiocracy," an average guy wakes up in a future where he's suddenly the smartest person around. Judge's animated blue-collar series, "King of the Hill," recently ended a 13-year run.
In "Extract," the setting is a plant where the title product is made and bottled. Into the life of the plant's owner, sexually frustrated Joel (Bateman), comes the lovely Cindy (Kunis), a grifter who shakes up (and shakes down) everyone in her path.
Kunis had the most genre cred among the "Extract" trio and was enjoying her role as the object of geek affection. She was in San Diego not only for this film, but for the upcoming "The Book of Eli" (with Denzel Washington and Gary Oldman) and for her voice work on "Family Guy."
"I think Cindy is misunderstood,
The water-bottling site in Los Angeles that stood in for the extract plant wasn't always a fun place, having nothing to do with the cast and crew and everything to do with the conditions. Kunis jumped into the conversation as Bateman was describing the set.
"It had no air conditioning, and it was shot during summer. It was hot and steamy. ... I'm not sure, it could have been him," she piped in, putting her head on Bateman's shoulder.
Said Bateman, "The heat did nothing for my hair ..."
And speaking of hair ...
The subject came up when the panelists were asked about absentee co-star Ben Affleck. He portrays Joel's flaky friend Dean, who has a drug or scheme for every situation and who sports a shoulder-length, unkempt mane.
Judge said Affleck's look was not part of a bigger plan. "That's something we talked about. I wanted him to have long hair, he wanted to have long hair. It was all just a beautiful thing."
Dean pushes pills, pot and questionable advice on his buddy Joel, who can't catch a break at home and at his business, where he feels more like a baby sitter than a boss. Judge said that reflects his own experiences overseeing a staff for the first time. It's nothing personal, though.
"Everybody's portrayed poorly in just about everything I do, so I'd like to think it's across the board," he said.
That was just another reason to smile for Bateman, obviously a fan of Judge's humor. The in-demand actor has a handful of projects with co-stars including Ricky Gervais and George Clooney set for release or near completion. He's also onboard whenever a script appears for a big-screen version of "Arrested Development,
Bateman described making "Extract" as "one of those dream jobs" that comes to an actor every so often.
Clearly, an acting job with Mike Judge is nothing like the jobs he depicts on film.
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