Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie (2025)
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2025-09 to 2026-08
A musical duo's attempt to book a gig leads to an accidental journey back in time.
The story
In 2008, Toronto musicians Matt Johnson and Jay McCarrol formed Nirvanna the Band with the goal of playing at the Rivoli. Seventeen years later, they remain unsuccessful in their quest. When a desperate publicity stunt involving a jump from the CN Tower fails, Matt suggests they pretend to be time travelers to win over the venue. However, a mishap involving a bottle of Orbitz and a modified RV accidentally transports the duo back to the year 2008. They must navigate the past while dealing with the consequences of their actions and the complexities of their shared history as a struggling musical act.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
After being transported to 2008, Matt and Jay realize that a bottle of Orbitz powered their time machine. They attempt to acquire more from their younger selves' apartment, and a positive interaction with the younger Jay makes the older Jay reconsider staying in the band. When he confesses his plan to go solo, a hurt Matt alters their younger selves' plans. They return to 2025 to find Jay a successful solo artist while Matt is a mere drummer in a cover band. After a confrontation where Jay destroys the last Orbitz, Jay becomes a lonely celebrity and accidentally kills a bandmate. He returns to Matt to use the time machine to undo the murder. Matt, realizing the danger, sacrifices himself to power the machine using his body as a conductor. Jay travels back to 2008 and corrects Matt's altered notes, restoring the timeline. In the present, Matt has no memory of the alternate timeline, and the two once again plan their failed skydive.
- First release year
- 2025
- Runtime (minutes)
- 100
- Production countries
- Canada
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Matt Johnson
- Writers
- Matt Johnson · writer; Jay McCarrol · writer
- Cast and characters
- Matt Johnson · fictionalised version of himself; Jay McCarrol · fictionalised version of himself; Jared Raab · fictionalised version of himself; Ben Petrie · fictionalised version of himself; Ethan Eng · fictionalised version of himself; Michael Scott · fictionalised version of himself; Reid Janisse · fictionalised version of himself
- Genres
- science fiction; comedy
- Themes
- friendship; time travel
- Tone and mood
- comedy; meta
- Premise and plot tags
- time travel; musical; parody
- Source material / true-story basis
- web series and television adaptation
- Franchise connections
- Nirvanna the Band the Show
- Reception
- The film received critical acclaim and won several awards at the Canadian Screen Awards.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 80 · scale: 100 · review count: 26
- Awards and nominations
- Best Motion Picture · Canadian Screen Awards · 14th · win; Best Lead Performance in a Comedy Film · Canadian Screen Awards · 14th · win; Best Supporting Performance in a Comedy Film · Canadian Screen Awards · 14th · win
- Production trivia
- The film's plot was heavily inspired by Back to the Future.; The production team recontextualised real police statements and press coverage relating to a Toronto shooting for use in the film.; The film's score was influenced by the works of Alan Silvestri, John Williams, and Bernard Herrmann.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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