I'm Chevy Chase and You're Not
| I'm Chevy Chase and You're Not | |
|---|---|
Official poster | |
| Directed by | Marina Zenovich |
| Produced by |
|
| Starring | Chevy Chase |
| Cinematography |
|
| Edited by | Greg Finton |
| Music by | Jeff Cardoni |
Production companies |
|
| Distributed by | CNN Films |
Release date |
|
Running time | 97 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
I'm Chevy Chase and You're Not is a 2026 American documentary film directed by Marina Zenovich. It explores the life and career of Chevy Chase.
It was broadcast on CNN on January 1, 2026, and released on HBO Max on January 31, 2026.
Premise
Explores the life and career of Chevy Chase. Chase and his family, Dan Aykroyd, Beverly D'Angelo, Goldie Hawn, Lorne Michaels, Ryan Reynolds, Martin Short, Kevin Smith, and Patrick Ganino are among those interviewed in the film.[1]
Production
In May 2025, it was announced Marina Zenovich would direct a documentary revolving around Chevy Chase for CNN Films, after previously making projects on Richard Pryor, Robin Williams and Lance Armstrong.[2][3] Zenovich described Chase as one of the rudest subjects she's interviewed.[4] The cast and crew who previously worked with Chase on Community, including Dan Harmon, were asked to participate in the project, but declined, except for Jay Chandrasekhar.[5]
Release
It was broadcast on CNN on January 1, 2026, and is scheduled to be released on HBO Max on January 31, 2026.[6][7] Sky Documentaries will distribute in the United Kingdom.[8] (Trailer[9])
Reception
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 92% of 13 critics' reviews are positive.[10] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 64 out of 100, based on six critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[11]
Nicole Sperling of The New York Times called it "honest but empathetic."[12]
"As a documentary filmmaker," notes Owen Gleiberman for Variety, "Marina Zenovich has long been drawn to difficult celebrities, like Roman Polanski (she made two films about him) and Robin Williams, but it’s not just because she sees the drama in their turbulence (though that’s part of it). She also wants to grapple — and does, brilliantly — with what you might call the primal issue of politically incorrect artists."[13]
John Anderson, another reviewer at Variety, stated: "To her credit, and that of her humanity, Ms. Zenovich has not made a hit piece. Her subject does a pretty good job of that on his own."[14]
Daniel Fienberg of The Hollywood Reporter wrote, "The interviews with Chase provide very few notable details, but he's far from dead weight. The casual glimpses of his ordinary life in Bedford and public events like his annual Q&As on behalf of Christmas Vacation are sweet and human and capture the 82-year-old comic as a rascal, but not an asshole at all."[15]
Richard Roeper of RogerEbert.com gave the film three out of four stars and wrote that it's "a gripping, funny, insightful, and at times melancholic look at a comedy legend who is in his 80s and still can be alternately charming and irascible in the span of a New York minute."[16]
Chase's feud with Terry Sweeney is discussed in the film, with Chase stating "Terry Sweeney, he was very funny, this guy. I don't think he's alive anymore". Sweeney responded by stating: "Don't you think he is saying this and making himself look more like the ass he is?"[17] Additionally, Chase's firing from Community is discussed, with Yvette Nicole Brown issuing a statement writing: "Anyone currently speaking FOR or ABOUT me with perceived authority is speaking without EVER speaking to me about the things they claim to know about. They actually don't really know me—at all."[18]
References
- ^ "How to Watch CNN Films New Years Day Broadcast of Marina Zenovich's I'm Chevy Chase and You're Not". CNN. November 20, 2025. Retrieved December 29, 2025.
- ^ White, Peter (May 14, 2025). "CNN Films Is Back: Chevy Chase Film & Cancer Project Usher In New Phase For Doc Strategy". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 30, 2025.
- ^ Jensen, Erin (December 31, 2025). "Why Chevy Chase's documentary is a 'tough watch' for the complicated actor". USA Today. Retrieved January 1, 2026.
- ^ Morfoot, Addie (December 28, 2025). "'I'm Chevy Chase, and You're Not' Director on Going Toe-to-Toe With Chevy, the 'Community' Cast Turning Down Interviews and the Doc Being a 'Hard Watch' for the Chase Family". Variety. Retrieved January 1, 2026.
- ^ Navlakha, Meera (December 29, 2025). "No One From 'Community' Wanted to Be in the Chevy Chase Documentary". The Daily Beast. Retrieved January 1, 2026.
- ^ Stenzel, Wesley (November 20, 2025). "Chevy Chase admits it was a 'mistake to leave SNL' in new documentary (exclusive)". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved December 30, 2025.
- ^ "What's New On HBO Max This January". Warner Bros. Discovery. December 22, 2025. Retrieved December 30, 2025.
- ^ Barraclough, Leo (October 13, 2025). "Chevy Chase Documentary Sees Propagate Content Team Up With Sky (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved December 30, 2025.
- ^ "I'm Chevy Chase and You're Not - Trailer". January 2026.
- ^ "I'm Chevy Chase And You're Not". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved February 27, 2026.
- ^ "I'm Chevy Chase and You're Not". Metacritic. Retrieved January 19, 2026.
- ^ "He's Chevy Chase, and He's Still Like That - The famously prickly comedian found a sympathetic adversary in the director of a CNN documentary about him. Their conversation with a reporter was … spirited". 1 January 2026.
- ^ "'I'm Chevy Chase and You're Not' Review: Marina Zenovich's Fascinating Doc Explores How Chevy Chase's Dark Side Was the Flip Side of His Genius - The film chronicles his singular career as a comedian and movie star, as well as the flippant cruelty that became part of his legend". 6 January 2026.
- ^ "'I'm Chevy Chase and You're Not' Review: CNN's Candid Portrait of a Comedian - This feature-length documentary focuses on the founding 'Saturday Night Live' cast member and movie star, who seems to be among the most disliked men in show business". 30 December 2025.
- ^ Fienberg, Daniel (December 30, 2025). "'I'm Chevy Chase and You're Not' Review: Marina Zenovich's CNN Doc Poses Fascinating Questions, but Can't Always Answer Them". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 31, 2025.
- ^ Roeper, Richard (December 31, 2025). "I'm Chevy Chase and You're Not". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved December 31, 2025.
- ^ Abramaovitch, Seth (December 31, 2025). "'SNL' Alum Terry Sweeney Breaks Silence on Chevy Chase CNN Doc Controversy: "He's So Rotten"". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 1, 2026.
- ^ Russell, Shania (December 31, 2025). "Community alum Yvette Nicole Brown speaks out amid Chevy Chase doc: 'Keep my name out of your mouth'". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved January 1, 2026.