Episode Review: The Studio 1x10 - "The Presentation"

Welcome back to the blog readers. In case you could not tell by now, I have fallen completely head over heels in love with The Studio (2025-). Its blend of comedy, satire, heart, and uncomfortability is just right enough to not touch a nerve. I am so pissed that this is the finale and we have to wait until who knows when to see more of these characters. In the meantime, what would we get in this finale, titled "The Presentation," written by Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, Peter Huyck, Alex Gregory, and Frida Perez, and directed by Rogen and Goldberg? Stick around to find out.

NOTE: I will be using spoilers for my thoughts, so DO NOT read ahead if you have not seen the episode.

---

If last week's CinemaCon party was as wild as that was, I expected just as wild shenanigans in this finale. Like I said in the introduction, I am so upset this is the finale because this has been the biggest surprise of the year television-wise so far and I really do not want it to end. All good things must though, and I am glad the finale was just as wild as last week's episode. Everyone knocks it out of the park this week in terms of the acting, and the conclusion to the CinemaCon storyline was just as I expected it to be: insane.

Out of all the people that have been in this finale, the one person I want to highlight absolutely has to be Zöe Kravitz playing herself. Last week, we saw a vulnerable side to her as we got to see her play someone high out of their mind on mushrooms. I came really close to adding the daughter of Lenny Kravitz to last week's review for the wild things she was saying, but this week I had no choice. The manic energy she is able to present carries over to this week as we see her worrying about a five-foot height difference, and all of it concludes in a presentation moment for the ages. I would honestly give Kravitz a nomination for Guest Appearance in a Comedy Series at the Emmys.

Now we have to talk about the equally as bonkers story than we got last week. We pick up immediately where we left off last week where Continental CEO Griffin Mill is completely high out of his own mind and he finds himself dancing and frolicking in the fountain at the Venetian, and producer Patty Leigh is keeping him company while recording him and waiting for journalist Matt Belloni - Patty revealed she is still bitter over Griffin's firing of her and she plans to expose this version of Griffin as payback and to possibly get her job back. Matt, Sal, Quinn, and Maya find the two and Patty abruptly puts her phone away and reveals her plan to them. Matt points out that she said she was more content and she abruptly changes her mind when he tells her about Continental's potential sale to Amazon. The five then plot to get Griffin past everyone in the casino (and later Matt Belloni himself) by walking with him Weekend at Bernie's (1989)-style. They are able to get him back to Matt's hotel room where Zöe Kravitz is still high from ingesting 3 mushroom-chocolates.

The group is divided in having to take care of both Kravitz and Griffin. Sal tries to get Griffin changed, and Matt tries to get Kravitz off a dresser she climbed on top of to avoid makeup and hairstyling. While all of this is going on, Maya kisses Matt passionately out of nowhere and the two are confronted by Sal. Everyone is eventually able to get to the presentation while still high, including Mill in a wheelchair and Zravitz and her agents. Before the presentation, Dave Franco informed Matt that he won money off mafia guys in the casino, and right before he is due to go on, he reveals the men beat him to a bloody pulp. He goes on stage as his Alphabet City character to disguise this fact and promote the film to a thunderous roar from the crowd. Matt convinces Patty to buy time with her speech for The Silver Lake for Kravitz to sober up and Matt to convince her agents to let her go up on stage. They try to get her to leave, but while the group is arguing she goes up on stage anyway and nails her speech to promote Blackwing. She winds up urinating afterwards.

Nicholas Stoller comes on stage to present The Kool-Aid Movie and he brings Matt on stage. Matt tries to buy Patty Griffin time (since he is still due to speak and she has a plan) and he further buys time by bringing Sal, Maya, Quinn, Patty, Petra, and Tyler on stage to thank them for being by his side in his first year as studio head. Patty then reveals her plan: to use the suspenders originally used to bring someone dressed as the Kool-Aid Man down and fit it for Griffin to come down. He is only coherent enough to read the word "movies" on the teleprompter and Matt turns it into a back-and-forth chant with the audience as they dance and celebrate a triumphant presentation.

The Studio brings a rambunctious first season together in brilliant, wild, and insane fashion to culminate in such a satisfying conclusion. Thank you all for reading, and I will see you for the next post.