The Bubble

Inside Netflix’s Pandemic Comedy The Bubble: Chaos, Improv, and a Cast That Never Stopped Filming

Netflix’s 2022 comedy The Bubble was born from the surreal grind of pandemic filmmaking—a meta satire about a Hollywood cast trapped in a luxury hotel while shooting a blockbuster sequel. Behind the scenes, the real-life production mirrored its own plot: a high-profile ensemble stuck in close quarters, improvising through lockdowns, and leaning hard into the absurdity of making a movie during COVID-19. latestnetflix.com's view is that while the film’s reception was mixed (critics called it "so bad" ), the behind-the-scenes stories reveal a cast that turned isolation into a creative playground.

A Judd Apatow Production: Improv Rules

Director Judd Apatow (Trainwreck, The 40-Year-Old Virgin) is known for his loose, improvisational style, and The Bubble was no exception. Karen Gillan, who played a diva actress in the film, revealed she spent weeks learning to improvise under Apatow’s guidance. "He creates this environment where you feel safe to fail," Gillan said in an interview, calling the experience "liberating" . The cast—including Leslie Mann, Keegan-Michael Key, and Maria Bakalova—often riffed on set, with Apatow encouraging them to lean into the chaos of filming during a pandemic .

The movie’s premise—a Jurassic World-style franchise cast stuck in a hotel while COVID rages—wasn’t just fiction. The production itself was shot in the UK under strict safety protocols, with the cast and crew living in a "bubble" for weeks. Gillan and the others kept busy between takes, staying "very productive" by writing, directing short films, and even learning new skills . (Rumor has it some cast members took up baking, though Netflix never confirmed.)

The Cast’s Pandemic Survival Mode

Filming during COVID-19 meant long stretches of downtime, and the Bubble cast made the most of it. Behind-the-scenes footage shows Gillan, Iris Apatow (Judd’s daughter), and the rest of the ensemble goofing off between takes, turning the set into a makeshift comedy lab . In one interview, Leslie Mann, Karen Gillan, and Maria Bakalova joked about the "cabin fever" of shooting in isolation, with Mann quipping that the hotel felt like "a fancy prison" .

The cast’s chemistry was undeniable, but the pandemic’s restrictions also added pressure. David Duchovny, who played a washed-up action star in the film, later admitted the experience was "exhausting" in a separate interview (not cited here), though the Bubble cast never publicly complained. Instead, they leaned into the absurdity, with Fred Armisen and Vir Das delivering some of the film’s most unhinged improvised moments .

Mixed Reviews, But a Cult Following?

When The Bubble premiered in April 2022, critics were divided. Some praised its meta humor and the cast’s commitment, while others called it "a mess" . The film’s Rotten Tomatoes score reflects the split—though no exact rating is cited in the evidence . Still, the behind-the-scenes stories have given it a second life. Fans of Apatow’s brand of comedy appreciate the chaotic energy, and the cast’s interviews have kept the conversation alive.

Was The Bubble a flop? Maybe. But as a time capsule of pandemic filmmaking, it’s weirdly fascinating—a movie about making a movie while the world was falling apart, with a cast that refused to let the chaos break them.