‘The Afterparty’: Dave Franco Fully Committed to Xavier By Recording 4 Singles and Launching a Website With Tour Dates
You could say Dave Franco is “all in” on being pop star Xavier on the Apple TV+ show The Afterparty. Hoping to generate some buzz for the comedy-drama series, Franco worked on his vocals and even recorded tracks in character to support the show, which is slated to come back for a second season in 2023.
Could we see Xavier on tour or on a spinoff show featuring his over-the-top antics? For Franco, the possibilities are endless as showrunners Phil Lord and Chris Miller see where they can take the series.
Dave Franco pulled out all of the stops to play Xavier on Apple TV+’s ‘The Afterparty’
The untimely demise of Franco’s insufferable pop star Xavier isn’t much of a spoiler; it’s the premise of the show. A successful musician looking to get revenge on his high school classmates for not liking him much, Xavier lives to show off his glamorous lifestyle and generally insist on his own greatness. But when he brings a group of his classmates back to his pad for a wild party post-reunion, the series turns into a murder mystery as he falls off his balcony to his death.
With splashes of Knives Out and Columbo, The Afterparty plunges hilariously into Chief Detective Danner’s (Tiffany Haddish) investigation of Xavier’s alleged murder. As Danner delves into the messy incident, there are plenty of possible motives. The show also has fun with the many ways Xavier earned his reputation.
Aside from Haddish and Franco, the cast employs other beloved comedic actors, including Sam Richardson, Zoë Chao, and Ike Barinholtz. Regardless, Franco is not fazed by playing a “huge douche,” as he calls Xavier. In an interview with Variety, the 36-year-old admits he loved jumping headlong into character because of the surprising versatility of the material.
“I essentially got to play a douchey character in every single different genre,” Franco said, adding that he particularly loved the homage to ’90s teen comedies. While the character could have been monotone, Franco lauds showrunners Miller and Lord for putting him in a position to succeed on screen. “Truly, this job reminded me how much fun acting can be, and I just want to work with those guys forever,” he said.
Dave Franco’s limited musical range didn’t slow him down at Xavier
To fully commit to the role, Franco even worked on his singing voice and hit the recording studio. On a four-track EP titled R.I.P. Xavier, Franco stays in character for the type of energetic club music you could expect from the fictional pop star. Jams like “Imma Live Forever” — an ironic jab at Xavier’s death — sound polished enough for the radio thanks to well-known producer Stelios Phili. Franco added that the production team quickly picked up on his limited musical ability to make the whole thing work.
More than just a few tracks, you can even find prospective tour dates on an “official” website for Xavier. However, the concert schedule did create some confusion. Franco admitted he received questions online from those who hadn’t seen The Afterparty. Some fans wondered if he’d pivoted to trying out a pop music career.
But if Xavier is anything but humble, Franco retains a marked humility offscreen while promoting The Afterparty. He even went on The Late Late Show with James Corden to explain that he apologized to the dancers who worked with him on the music video for “Imma Live Forever.”
“I’m sorry your life has come to this,” Franco joked to Corden about meeting the dance crew, explaining that some of the dancers previously worked with Michael Jackson and Justin Bieber.
Apple TV+ has already renewed ‘The Afterparty’ for a second season
For those who know the work of Miller and Lord, it’s not surprising that Apple TV+ greenlit the second season of The Afterparty before Season 1 even reached its finale. A regular producing team, Miller and Lord have backed a string of successful movies and TV shows, including 21 Jump Street, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, The Lego Movie, and How I Met Your Mother. For The Afterparty, they even worked in a joke about a fictitious Hungry Hungry Hippos movie Xavier starred in, making him a Justin Timberlake-type dual threat.
Miller and Lord are also used to critical acclaim, which was the case for The Afterparty, too. The first season of the murder-mystery comedy series stands strong with an 89% positive rating on popular aggregate Rotten Tomatoes. They also won an Oscar together for producing Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, the first entry in an animated Spider-Man trilogy that received wide acclaim.
We don’t have any firm details about the cast for Season 2 or when it will premiere. But Haddish is expected to return as the star. Screen Rant speculates that, given Season 1’s ending, the story will likely revolve around detectives (Haddish and John Early).
Franco also said he would welcome a spinoff series based on his Xavier character. However, there are no known plans for that at this time. With Apple quickly renewing the show, an early 2023 premiere is the likely target for The Afterparty Season 2.
