Jordan Firstman’s ‘Club Kid’ Is Perfect on Rotten Tomatoes, and Critics Can’t Stop Gushing
For years, Jordan Firstman has been known as an internet-famous comedian with a sharply ironic online persona. That reputation made his move into feature filmmaking a curious one, since viewers wondered whether the persona could translate into a full-length story. His directorial debut, ‘Club Kid‘, suggests it can, and then some.
The movie is a true one-man effort in front of and behind the camera, since Firstman wrote, directed and stars in it. It premiered in the Un Certain Regard section at the Cannes Film Festival in May, where it inspired a heated bidding war. A24 beat out Focus Features, Searchlight, Netflix and Mubi for a global rights deal worth $17 million.
Now that the movie is arriving in limited release on November 6, the critical response has become impossible to ignore. ‘Club Kid’ currently sits at 100% on Rotten Tomatoes with a Certified Fresh badge, based on 80 reviews. That puts it among the best-reviewed films of the year, and the score has stayed perfect even as the review count has climbed from the first festival reactions.
The story follows Peter, a hard-partying New York City club promoter whose whirlwind lifestyle is upended by the arrival of a 10-year-old son he never knew he had. Firstman plays Peter, while Reggie Absolom plays Arlo, the boy at the center of the story. The film runs 2 hours and 6 minutes and is rated R.
The supporting cast includes Cara Delevingne as Sophie, Peter’s business partner, along with Diego Calva, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Colleen Camp and Vicki Pepperdine. Eldar Isgandarov and Miss Benny also appear. Cinematographer Adam Newport-Berra shot the production on 35mm film, and Cristóbal Tapia de Veer composed the score.
The praise has been consistent. IndieWire called the film a brazen, funny and surprisingly earnest debut that plays to all sides of the room despite being unapologetically queer, and gave it an A-. The review also suggested it could break out bigger than its niche scope implies, with Firstman setting aside the ironic pose he has maintained online and emerging as a sincere storyteller.
The Los Angeles Times said the movie shows Firstman has a distinctive vision as a director, noting that audiences can come for the arch humor and stay for the sweetness underneath. TheWrap described it as earnest, heartwarming and vivacious, while The Hollywood Reporter called it a confident and exciting debut that is stylish without being showy. The Guardian, Awards Watch and BuzzFeed have also been among the outlets praising its heart, with the film being framed as a love letter to queer nightlife.
The first trailer for Jordan Firstman’s acclaimed directorial debut ‘CLUB KID’ has been released. In theaters November 6. https://t.co/yv6MA4a8wS
— Film Updates (@FilmUpdates) August 19, 2026
What seems to be winning people over is the balance. Reviewers describe a film that is riotously funny and packed with references for meme lovers and culture queens, yet also willing to sit with generational sadness and the messiness of everyday life. One critic said it suggests that growing older means learning which parts of ourselves deserve preserving and which habits have outlived their usefulness.
Variety noted that the film’s sentimental core is exactly why A24 made its big bet. The studio and Firstman are relying on word-of-mouth, though the outlet pointed out that the movie’s depiction of a child pulled into a druggy New York underbelly could attract criticism from conservative rage-baiters. The perfect Rotten Tomatoes score, however, suggests that audiences are receiving the film’s intended message, especially since the kid is often the one doing the child-rearing.
A debut this well received is rare, and the film arrives with momentum from the festival circuit. After Cannes, it also made its Canadian premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival before heading to theaters. It is also set in the pre-Trump era, and cast members said returning to that time was a joy.
Limited releases often live or die on buzz, and ‘Club Kid’ has plenty of it. If the reviews translate to ticket sales, Firstman’s leap from online comedian to filmmaker could become one of the year’s best success stories for A24. For now, the film is in theaters and the critics are cheering it on.
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