It has been literally forever (read: two years and 10 months) since we first learned that Donald Glover would be remaking Mr. and Mrs. Smith as a Prime Video series. And, much like the central couple’s marriage, there have been many speed bumps along the way.

Glover’s co-star Phoebe Waller-Bridge dropped out seven months into development. (She has, notably, not produced a single project underneath her extremely expensive Prime Video deal thus far—but that’s a whole ’nother story.) Waller-Bridge’s exit pushed production and, thus, a premiere date back, and back, and back…until it started to feel like Mr. and Mrs. Smith may have been a collective dream Glover-heads all shared.

With Maya Erskine replacing Waller-Bridge, PEN15 fans rejoiced—and anyone who doubted that the woman best known for playing a horny middle schooler would be as good as, if not better than, Waller-Bridge in this kind of role can shut their traps. Mrs. and Mrs. Smith looks as sexy, thrilling, and, yes, funny as we could have hoped.

The first trailer for the very real show, which now has a release date—Feb. 2, and we’re holding you to it, Amazon!—is crackling with sexual chemistry. Erskine and Glover are secret agents who take on a cushy espionage gig with a catch; they have to enter an arranged marriage. Spy hijinks ensue as they travel around the world in search of their marks. And, eventually, the play-acting turns into real feelings, which the pair sell with every stolen glance and, yes, even a kiss.

Besides the whole Erskine-and-Glover thing, what’s kept us up at night over the impending Mr. and Mrs. Smith is that potential for hotness. The story has one of those juicy rom-com premises that lives and dies by its stars’ chemistry: forcing two attractive people resolute in their commitment to nothing but the job to cohabitate.

But the secret sauce of this reboot is that the sexual tension is deepened by what Prime Video calls “relatability,” which really means that these hot people are also funny. Erskine and Glover’s deadpan senses of humor mesh together well, especially in an absurd world filled with character actors like Sarah Paulson, Paul Dano, and John Turturro. And as soon as Erskine’s Jane says to Glover’s John that she “should be clear—I’m not in this for the romance,” we know she’s lying, even if she doesn’t yet.

Consider that Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s Mr. and Mrs. Smith from 2005 led to an actual marriage. I’m not saying that’s in the cards for the happily married Erskine and longtime-boo’d up Glover. But if they hadn’t developed something believable after all that production time, Prime Video might as well have shelved this show.

Feb. 2, 2024—mark it!

QOSHE - Donald Glover’s ‘Mr. and Mrs. Smith’ Looks Sexy as Hell - Allegra Frank
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Donald Glover’s ‘Mr. and Mrs. Smith’ Looks Sexy as Hell

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07.12.2023

It has been literally forever (read: two years and 10 months) since we first learned that Donald Glover would be remaking Mr. and Mrs. Smith as a Prime Video series. And, much like the central couple’s marriage, there have been many speed bumps along the way.

Glover’s co-star Phoebe Waller-Bridge dropped out seven months into development. (She has, notably, not produced a single project underneath her extremely expensive Prime Video deal thus far—but that’s a whole ’nother story.) Waller-Bridge’s exit pushed production and, thus, a premiere date back, and back, and back…until it started to feel like Mr. and Mrs. Smith may have been a collective dream........

© The Daily Beast


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