{{Short description|2012 film by Judd Apatow}} {{Use mdy dates|date=December 2023}} {{Infobox film | name = This Is 40 | image = This_is_40.jpg | alt = | caption = Theatrical release poster | director = Judd Apatow | producer = {{Plainlist| * Judd Apatow * Barry Mendel * Clayton Townsend }} | writer = Judd Apatow | based_on = {{basedon|Characters|Judd Apatow}}<!-- credit on the poster --> | starring = {{Plainlist| * Paul Rudd * Leslie Mann * John Lithgow * Megan Fox * Albert Brooks }} | music = Jon Brion | cinematography = Phedon Papamichael | editing = Brent White<br />Jay Deuby<br />David Bertman | studio = Apatow Productions | distributor = Universal Pictures | released = {{Film date|2012|12|21|ref1=<ref name="releaseDate" />}} | runtime = 133 minutes<!--Theatrical runtime: 133:37--><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbfc.co.uk/AFF291742/ |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130419215302/http://www.bbfc.co.uk/AFF291742/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 19, 2013 |title=''This Is 40'' |website=British Board of Film Classification |date=October 22, 2012 |access-date=November 6, 2012}}</ref> | country = United States | language = English | budget = $35 million<ref name="mojo">{{cite web |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=apatow.htm |title=This Is 40 (2012) |website=Box Office Mojo |date=February 28, 2013 |access-date=November 15, 2013}}</ref> | gross = $88.1 million<ref name="mojo" /> }} '''''This Is 40''''' is a 2012 American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Judd Apatow and starring Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann. A "sort-of sequel" to Apatow's film ''Knocked Up'' (2007), its plot centers on married couple Pete and Debbie, whose stressful relationship is compounded by each turning 40.
Filming was conducted in mid-2011, and ''This Is 40'' was released in the United States on December 21, 2012. It received mixed reviews from critics, who praised its cast, acting, and the film's comedic moments and perceptive scenes, but criticized its overlong running time and occasional aimlessness. In March 2022, it was announced that Apatow was in early development of a third film, set 10 years later and titled ''This Is 50''.
==Plot== <!-- Per WP:FILMPLOT, plot summary should be between 400 to 700 words. --> Five years after ''Knocked Up'', Debbie owns a boutique, and among her employees are a frumpy cynic and poor saleswoman named Jodi and an attractive and talented saleswoman named Desi about whom Debbie and Jodi gossip, mostly in terms of Jodi hating that Desi exists at all. Pete owns his own record label, but it struggles financially as he promotes the reunion of Graham Parker & The Rumour.
Debbie and Pete also deal with conflict between their daughters, 13-year-old Sadie and eight-year-old Charlotte. For Debbie's 40th birthday, the couple goes on a romantic weekend to a resort. There they get high on marijuana cookies and fantasize out loud about ways they would kill each other.
After speaking with her friends Jason and Barb, Debbie decides to improve her marriage and family through exercise and strengthening her relationship with her father. She tells Pete he needs to stop lending his father Larry money because it is hurting them financially, but he fails to follow through with this.
Meanwhile, Debbie learns she is pregnant but decides not to tell Pete. Later, she yells at a student, Joseph, who had an online argument with Sadie on Facebook leading to a confrontation between Pete and Joseph's mother, Catherine.
Debbie takes Desi out dancing at a club, where she plans to confront her about $12,000 in missing store funds that Jodi has told her were stolen by Desi. They meet several players from the Philadelphia Flyers hockey team there. Debbie awkwardly finds out that one of the players wants to hang out with her and possibly sleep with her. Though flattered, she reveals that she is married, has two children, and is pregnant. He responds with politeness and they part on good terms.
Pete and Debbie deal with Sadie and Charlotte's constant fighting, which puts an additional strain upon the family. They meet with the school principal, but the couple denies Catherine's accusations, and when she starts using the same foul language they had used previously, the principal dismisses them. When Debbie confronts Desi about the missing funds, Desi reveals that she works as an escort and is able to afford nice things because of it. Jodi confesses to stealing the $12,000 to support her OxyContin addiction, and Debbie fires her.
At Pete's 40th birthday party, the couple again argues about the money his father wants from them. Debbie argues with her father about not spending enough time in her life, and how he is perfect. Oliver then explains that his life is not perfect, and how he has always cared about her and loved her.
Later, Pete overhears Debbie talking about her pregnancy, and angrily leaves the house on his bicycle. Debbie and Larry pursue him, and after Pete cycles into a car door, he gets into an argument with the driver, who then punches him in the stomach.
Debbie and Larry take Pete to the hospital, where they reconcile, with Larry recognizing that she is the fighter who keeps the family together. Pete further realizes he is actually thrilled about having another child, and reconciles with Debbie.
Sometime later, Pete and Debbie are watching a small concert with Ryan Adams performing. She suggests he sign him to his label and they plan to talk to him as they finish watching the show.<ref name="lacma">{{cite news |title=Judd Apatow shows 'This Is 40' to appreciative LACMA audience |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/moviesnow/la-et-mn-judd-apatow-this-is-40-lacma-20121102,0,3187528.story |date=November 2, 2012 |first=Mark |last=Olsen |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |access-date=November 6, 2012}}</ref>
==Cast== {{cast list| * Paul Rudd as Pete, Debbie's husband and a record label owner * Leslie Mann as Debbie, Pete's wife and a shop owner * Maude Apatow as Sadie, their 13-year-old daughter * Iris Apatow as Charlotte, their 8-year-old daughter * Jason Segel as Jason, Debbie's trainer * Lo Mutuc{{Efn|Credited as Charlyne Yi}} as Jodi, one of Debbie's employees * Tim Bagley as Dr. Pellegrino, Debbie's gynecologist * John Lithgow as Oliver, Debbie's father * Albert Brooks as Larry, Pete's father * Megan Fox as Desi, one of Debbie's employees * Chris O'Dowd as Ronnie, one of Pete's employees * Melissa McCarthy as Catherine * Ryan Lee as Joseph * Lena Dunham as Cat, one of Pete's employees * Robert Smigel as Barry, Pete's friend * Annie Mumolo as Barb, Debbie's friend * Joanne Baron as Mrs. Laviati * Ava Sambora as Wendy, Sadie's best friend * Michael Ian Black as Bank Consultant * Bill Hader as Desi's hook up customer (uncredited) * Billie Joe Armstrong as himself * Graham Parker as himself * Ryan Adams as himself * Tom Freund as himself * Bob Andrews as himself * Brinsley Schwarz as himself * Martin Belmont as himself * Andrew Bodnar as himself * Steve Goulding as himself
'''Cameos''' * Scott Hartnell * Ian Laperrière * James van Riemsdyk * Matt Carle * Wyatt Russell }}
==Release== ''This Is 40'' was originally scheduled to be released on June 1, 2012. In May 2011, Universal postponed the release to December 2012, allowing the studio to use that date for their release of ''Snow White & the Huntsman''; the ''Snow White'' film was seen as better competition with a rival 2012 Snow White film project, ''Mirror Mirror'', by Relativity Media.<ref name="releaseDate" />
The premiere for ''This Is 40'' was held on December 12, 2012, at the Grauman's Chinese Theatre, in Los Angeles. The film was released on December 21, 2012, opening in 2,912 locations nationwide.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/slideshow/This-Is-40-premiere-53936.php |title='This Is 40' premiere |date=December 14, 2012 |newspaper=San Francisco Chronicle |access-date=December 6, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=3589&p=.htm |title=Forecast: Eight Nationwide Releases Crowd Theaters This Christmas |website=Box Office Mojo |date=December 20, 2012 |first=Ray |last=Subers |access-date=December 6, 2014}}</ref>
===Box office=== During its opening weekend, ''This Is 40'' grossed $11.58 million at the domestic box office.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.the-numbers.com/news/7875 |title=Christmas Weekend Wrap-Up |website=The Numbers |date=December 27, 2012 |first=C. S. |last=Strowbridge |access-date=December 6, 2014}}</ref>
By the end of its theatrical run, ''This Is 40'' grossed approximately $67.5 million at the domestic box office, and approximately $20.5 million at the foreign box office, with a worldwide total of $88,058,786.<ref name="mojo" /> While it had the lowest opening weekend for any of Apatow's films, it was a greater box-office success than his prior film, ''Funny People''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/people/chart/?view=Director&id=juddapatow.htm |title=Judd Apatow Box Office Results |website=Box Office Mojo |access-date=December 7, 2014}}</ref>
===Critical reception=== Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a 52% approval rating, based on reviews from 221 critics, with an average rating of 5.80/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Judd Apatow definitely delivers funny and perceptive scenes in ''This Is 40'', even if they are buried in aimless self-indulgence."<ref name="rt">{{cite web |title=This is 40 (2012) |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/this_is_40/ |publisher=Fandango Media |work=Rotten Tomatoes |access-date=May 6, 2025}}</ref> On Metacritic, the film received a score of 59 out of 100, based on reviews from 39 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".<ref name="Metacritic">{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/this-is-40 |title=This Is 40 Reviews |publisher=CBS Interactive |work=Metacritic |access-date=January 16, 2013}}</ref> Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B−" on an A+ to F scale.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Finke |first=Nikki |date=December 22, 2012 |title=Friday Box Office: Tom Cruise's 'Jack Reacher' #2, Judd Apatow's 'This Is 40' #3, Behind Peter Jackson's #1 'The Hobbit' |url=https://deadline.com/2012/12/first-box-office-tom-cruises-jack-reacher-2-judd-apatows-this-is-40-4-393490/ |access-date=July 31, 2022 |website=Deadline Hollywood |language=en-US}}</ref>
Robbie Collin of ''The Daily Telegraph'' gave the film two stars out of five, commending its premise but criticizing its execution. "''This Is 40'' is a comedy film about the hell of getting older in a place where aging naturally is the last taboo, and I only wish it lived up to that utterly inspired concept...every scene feels like an airbrushed composite of dozens of rambling takes, and 133 minutes is drainingly long for a story this sitcom-slight," he wrote.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/filmreviews/9870861/This-is-40-review.html |title=This is 40, review |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |first=Robbie |last=Collin |date=February 14, 2013 |access-date=December 7, 2014}}</ref>
Peter Travers of ''Rolling Stone'' gave the film three stars out of four, saying "There are big laughs here, and smaller ones that sting. Rudd and Mann are a joy to watch, especially when their comic darts draw blood, as when Debbie tells "charmboy" Pete that inside he's a dick. Cheers as well to a terrific supporting cast, including Melissa McCarthy as a mother from hell, John Lithgow as Debbie's withdrawn father, and the priceless Albert Brooks as Pete's dad, living off his son's dole to support his tow-headed triplets. ''This Is 40'' doesn't build to a catharsis. It sometimes dawdles as it circles the spectacle of a marriage in flux. Yet Pete and Debbie's sparring yields some of Apatow's most personal observations yet on the feelings for husbands, wives, parents, and children that we categorize as love."<ref>{{cite magazine |first=Peter |last=Travers |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/reviews/this-is-40-20121218 |title=This Is 40 | Movie Reviews |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=December 18, 2012 |access-date=November 15, 2013}}</ref>
Michael Phillips of the ''Chicago Tribune'' said "More like ''This Is Whiny''", giving the film two and a half stars out of four. "''This Is 40'' has its share of clever, zingy material, proving that writer-director Judd Apatow has lost none of his ability to land a punch line with the right, unexpected turn of phrase. 'My boobs are just ... gone,' bemoans Debbie, played by Leslie Mann, comparing hers with those of her employee, played by Megan Fox. Then comes the second line, building smartly on the setup: 'They didn't even say goodbye.' Mann is wonderful, a uniquely skillful comic and dramatic actor—wide-eyed yet merrily devastating when the venom's called for. Rudd can get away with murder on sheer charm. But it's easy, and sort of lazy, to establish jokes and entire scenes built upon mocking somebody's dialect, or the older daughter's obsession with ''Lost''."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/movies/sc-mov-1218-this-is-40-20121220-column.html |title=Judd Apatow misses chance to go deeper with 'This Is 40' ★★ 1/2 |first=Michael |last=Phillips |newspaper=Chicago Tribune |date=December 20, 2012 |access-date=December 7, 2014}}</ref>
Richard Roeper gave the film a C− and called the film "a huge disappointment". His main complaint about the film was its running time and most of the unnecessary supporting characters.<ref>{{cite web |first=Richard |last=Roeper |author-link=Richard Roeper |url=http://www.richardroeper.com/reviews/thisis40.aspx |title=This is 40 Review |website=RichardRoeper.com |access-date=November 15, 2013 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121231195755/http://www.richardroeper.com/reviews/thisis40.aspx |archive-date=December 31, 2012}}</ref>
''The New Yorker''{{'}}s Richard Brody writes, ''This Is 40'' "is the stuff of life, and it flows like life, and, like life, it would be good for it to last longer".<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/richard-brody/this-is-40-and-the-meaning-of-life |title="This Is 40" and the Meaning of Life |date=December 21, 2012 |first=Richard |last=Brody |magazine=The New Yorker |access-date=December 7, 2014}}</ref>
==Accolades== {| class="wikitable" rowspan="5;" style="text-align:center; background:#fff;" |- !Date of ceremony !! Award !! Category!! Recipients !! Result !! {{Abbr|Ref.|References}} |- |June 20, 2013 |ASCAP Film & Television Awards||Top Box Office Films||Jon Brion<br />Graham Parker||{{won}}||<ref>{{cite web |url=http://filmmusicreporter.com/2013/06/21/patrick-doyle-honored-at-ascap-film-and-television-music-awards/ |title=Patrick Doyle Honored at ASCAP Film & Television Music Awards |date=June 21, 2013 |website=Film Music Reporter |access-date=December 7, 2014}}</ref> |- |rowspan="3"|January 10, 2013 |rowspan="3"|Critics' Choice Movie Award||Best Comedy Film||''This Is 40''||{{nom}}||rowspan="3"|<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.eonline.com/news/370333/critics-choice-awards-2013-complete-list-of-nominations |title=Critics' Choice Awards 2013: Complete List of Nominations |date=December 11, 2012 |publisher=E! |access-date=December 7, 2014}}</ref> |- |Best Actor in a Comedy||Paul Rudd||{{nom}} |- |Best Actress in a Comedy||Leslie Mann||{{nom}} |- |March 30, 2014 |Empire Awards|||Best Comedy||''This Is 40''||{{nom}}||<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=40254 |title=The Jameson Empire Awards 2014 Nominations Are Here! |magazine=Empire |date=February 24, 2014 |first=Ali |last=Plumb |access-date=December 7, 2014}}</ref> |- |rowspan="3"|May 3, 2013 |rowspan="3"|Golden Trailer Awards||Best Comedy||"Trailer 4"<br />Universal Pictures<br />Workshop Creative||{{nom}}||rowspan="3"|<ref>{{cite web |url=http://goldentrailer.com/awards.gta14.php |title=The 14th Annual Golden Trailer Award Nominees |website=Golden Trailer Awards |access-date=December 7, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141008025829/http://goldentrailer.com/awards.gta14.php |archive-date=October 8, 2014 }}</ref> |- |Best Comedy TV Spot||"Knocked Up"<br />Universal Pictures||{{nom}} |- |Best Comedy Poster||Universal Pictures<br />Cimarron Entertainment||{{nom}} |- |October 22, 2012 |Hollywood Film Awards||Hollywood Comedy Award||Judd Apatow||{{won}}||<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/race/hollywood-film-awards-judd-apatow-quvenzhane-wallis-369717 |title=Hollywood Film Awards to Honor Judd Apatow and 'Beasts of the Southern Wild' Actress (Exclusive) |work=The Hollywood Reporter |first=Scott |last=Feinberg |date=September 12, 2012 |access-date=December 7, 2014}}</ref> |- |December 19, 2012 |IGN Summer Movie Awards|||Best Comedy Movie||''This Is 40''||{{nom}}||<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ign.com/wikis/best-of-2012/Best_Comedy_Movie |title=Best Comedy Movie - Best of 2012 |website=IGN |date=December 5, 2012 |access-date=December 7, 2014}}</ref> |- |December 18, 2012 |Phoenix Film Critics Society Awards||Best Young Actress||rowspan="2"|Maude Apatow||{{nom}}||<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.indiewire.com/article/les-miserables-leads-phoenix-film-critics-nominations |title='Les Miserables' Leads Phoenix Film Critics Nominations |first=Peter |last=Knegt |date=December 12, 2012 |website=Indiewire |access-date=December 7, 2014}}</ref> |- |May 5, 2013 |Young Artist Award||Best Performance in a Feature Film - Supporting Young Actress||{{nom}}||<ref name="Young Artist Awards 3">{{cite web |url=http://www.youngartistawards.org/noms34.html |title=34th Annual Young Artist Awards |access-date=March 31, 2013 |website=Young Artist Award}}</ref> |}
==Home media== ''This Is 40'' was released for Blu-ray and DVD in the United States on March 22, 2013.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.the-numbers.com/news/8118 |title=DVD and Blu-ray Releases for March 19th, 2013 |website=The Numbers |date=March 19, 2013 |first=C. S. |last=Strowbridge |access-date=December 7, 2014}}</ref> The disc features an unrated and also theatrical version of the film, as well as numerous bonus features.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=10369 |title=This is 40 Blu-ray |date=January 29, 2013 |website=Blu-ray.com |access-date=July 11, 2015}}</ref>
==Sequel== {{Anchor|Sequel|Sequels}} Director Judd Apatow stated he is interested in a possible sequel, shifting the focus off married couple Pete and Debbie and moving it onto their budding teenage daughter Sadie. During an interview on March 30, 2013, Apatow was questioned about the prospect of a sequel to ''This Is 40''. He admitted to being intrigued by the idea.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://screenrant.com/judd-apatow-knocked-up-this-40-sequel-trilogy/ |title=Judd Apatow Planning 'This Is 40′ Sequel to Complete 'Knocked Up' Trilogy |website=Screen Rant |first=Sandy |last=Schaefer |date=February 2, 2013 |access-date=December 7, 2014}}</ref>
In March 2022, it was reported Apatow was in early development of writing a script, with the film set ten years after the previous, titled ''This is 50''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://collider.com/judd-apatow-this-is-40-sequel/ |title=Judd Apatow Developing 'This Is 40' Sequel |website=Collider |first=Rachel |last=Leishman |date=March 17, 2022 |access-date=March 17, 2022}}</ref>
==Notes== {{notelist}}
==References== {{Reflist||refs= <ref name="releaseDate">{{cite web |first=Mike |last=Fleming |url=https://deadline.com/2011/05/snow-white-battle-intensifies-as-universal-moves-its-pic-one-month-before-relativity-rival-132364/ |title=Snow White Battle Intensifies As Universal Moves Its Pic One Month Before Relativity Rival |website=Deadline Hollywood |date=May 16, 2011 |access-date=September 10, 2011}}</ref> }}
==External links== * {{IMDb title|1758830|This Is 40}} * {{mojo title|apatow|This Is 40}} * {{rotten-tomatoes|this_is_40}} * {{Metacritic film}} * {{facebook|ThisIs40|''This Is 40''}}
{{Judd Apatow}} {{Philadelphia Flyers}} {{Authority control}}
Category:2012 comedy-drama films Category:American comedy-drama films Category:Apatow Productions films Category:English-language comedy-drama films Category:Films about dysfunctional families Category:Films about marriage Category:Films directed by Judd Apatow Category:Films produced by Judd Apatow Category:Films produced by Barry Mendel Category:Films produced by Clayton Townsend Category:Films scored by Jon Brion Category:Films set in Los Angeles Category:Films shot in Los Angeles Category:Film spinoffs Category:Films with screenplays by Judd Apatow Category:Films about parenting Category:Midlife crisis films Category:Philadelphia Flyers Category:Universal Pictures films Category:2012 English-language films Category:2012 American films Category:2012 films