An American Pickle

Herschel Greenbaum and his spouse, Sarah Greenbaum, are struggling Jewish laborers. They emigrate from their shtetl to America in 1919 after their village is rampaged by Russian Cossacks. Herschel finds a job at a pickle factory, and is able to save up for two graves at a Jewish cemetery. One day, while working at his job, he falls into a vat of pickles. The factory is closed and he is brined for 100 years.

Having woken up in 2019 Brooklyn, Herschel discovers that his only living relative is his great-grandson Ben. Ben works as a freelance app developer and is currently developing his own app "Boop Bop", a service that checks companies' ethics when buying their products. Ben reluctantly agrees to go with Herschel to the cemetery where Sarah and his son are buried, along with Ben's parents. Herschel is disgusted to find that the cemetery was left in shambles, along with a Russian vodka billboard overlooking it. This causes him to assault the construction workers putting up the billboard, leading to his and Ben's arrest.

Ben is able to bail them out of jail; however, he is now unable to get investors for his app due to his new criminal record, causing him to disown Herschel. Herschel decides to begin a pickle business in order to buy and take down the billboard overlooking the cemetery. Herschel's business is a huge success over social media. However, Ben tells health inspectors that Herschel has been using produce found in the trash bins, causing him to be charged $12,000. Herschel is able to come back from this with the assistance of unpaid interns, causing his business to become even more popular and allowing him to refurbish the cemetery and remove the billboard. Herschel's success leads to Ben envying him even more.

Ben then tells Herschel to download Twitter, and he begins tweeting controversial statements. While initially met with protests and boycotts, Herschel is then seen as an icon of free speech and empowerment. While Herschel is hosting a friendly debate, Ben shows up and questions his thoughts on Christianity. This leads to a rant about Christianity, causing Herschel to become despised by the public. His immigration files are also not to be found, causing the government to try and deport him.

Herschel arrives at Ben's apartment, and Ben reluctantly agrees to help him get to the Canadian border. Through this, Ben and Herschel begin to reconcile their relationship. However, Ben admits that he tried to sabotage Herschel's business, causing Herschel to admit that he is disappointed that Ben is more committed to his app than his family's legacy, leading to a physical fight between the two. Herschel is able to steal Ben's backpack, and uses his razor to shave and puts on his clothes to pose as Ben, alerting the police that the real Ben is Herschel. This causes the real Ben's arrest and deportation.

While at Ben's apartment, Herschel discovers that the app's name, "Boop Bop", was actually the nickname Ben gave his late parents, leading Herschel to realize that family was always in Ben's heart. He returns to his home country to find Ben, who is staying at a local synagogue. They reconcile, and sometime later return to Brooklyn, hoping to develop a pickle-selling website.

Seth Rogen and Simon Rich began to discuss the idea for the film as early as 2007.[4] On May 29, 2013, it was announced that Sony Pictures had acquired the screen rights to the short story Sell Out by Rich. Producers were set to consist of Rogen, Evan Goldberg, and James Weaver, while Rich was expected to serve as an executive producer. Production companies involved with the film were slated to include Point Grey Pictures.[5]

On September 27, 2018, it was announced that Brandon Trost was attached to direct the film, that Rich would write the film, and that additional producers now included Alexandria McAtee.[6][7]

Alongside the directing announcement, it was confirmed that the film would star Rogen.[6][7] On November 26, 2018, it was announced that Maya Erskine, Sarah Snook, Eliot Glazer, Kalen Allen, Molly Evensen, and Kevin O'Rourke had joined the cast (although Erskine ultimately did not appear in the film).[8] Principal photography took place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania from October 29 to December 22, 2018.[9][10]

Nami Melumad has been set to compose the music while Michael Giacchino was tasked to write the themes for the film, including a suite titled "Pickles, Suite or Sour."[11]

On April 27, 2020, it was announced Warner Bros. had acquired worldwide distribution rights to the film from Sony Pictures.[12] It was digitally released in the United States on HBO Max and Canada on VOD partner Crave on August 6, 2020.[13] In November, Variety reported the film was the 20th-most watched straight-to-streaming title of 2020 up to that point.[14]

The film was theatrically in the United Kingdom on August 7, 2020.[15] It made $36,194 from 162 theaters in its UK debut, finishing fourth at the box office.[16] The film also screened in Israel as part of the Jerusalem Film Festival.[17]

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 73% based on 154 reviews, with an average rating of 6.13/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "An American Pickle lacks the tart snap viewers might expect given its creative premise, but Seth Rogen's dual performance makes this a low-key comedy to relish."[18] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 58 out of 100, based on 39 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[19]

Writing for The Hollywood Reporter, David Rooney said: "An American Pickle is neither the most substantial nor the most sophisticated comedy, but its soulful sweetness outweighs its flaws."[20] Barry Hertz of The Globe and Mail gave the film three out of four stars and wrote: "[Rogen] also manages to make the film's har-har dual-role conceit work beyond mere shtick. There is Herschel, and there is Ben, and Rogen plays each one of them with a decidedly unique energy. Meanwhile, director Brandon Trost, a longtime cinematographer for such Rogen films as Neighbors and The Interview, makes the mensch-on-mensch action seem as real as can be."[21]

Owen Gleiberman of Variety called the film "too cantankerous to be funny and too preposterous to believe" and wrote that "An American Pickle, in its ethnically satirical and scattered way, lacks the integrity of its own ridiculousness. It's pungent but flavorless: an unkosher dill."[22]

• An American Pickle at IMDb
• Official website