KJ Apa is portraying one of the most iconic actors in American history, James “Jimmy” Stewart, and people can’t stop talking about his portrayal of the voice.
On Dec. 17, a teaser for Jimmy was released, starring the Riverdale actor. The film will cover Jimmy’s decision to enlist in the US Army Air Corps during World War II after his 1941 Oscar win for The Philadelphia Story.
The teaser is going viral, and people have a lot of thoughts about KJ’s imitation of Jimmy’s voice and the film’s overall quality. Jimmy’s daughter, Kelly Stewart-Harcourt, is an executive producer and said the actor (full name Keneti James Fitzgerald Apa) is the right one to bring her father to life. “I felt a magic,” she told Variety. “I know this will be conveyed in the film, and I can’t wait to see it.”
Despite Jimmy’s daughter’s approval, many people are commenting on KJ’s resemblance (or lack thereof) to Jimmy Stewart’s voice:
“I think the problem with making a serious biopic of Jimmy Stewart with a not joke impression of his voice is that Jimmy Stewart himself struggled with making his voice not sound like a joke sometimes…and he was one of the greatest actors of his generation,” one person wrote.
“Jimmy Stewart had a pennsyltucky kind of midwestern dialect but Apa is falling into trap of focusing on voice and diction and not the performance, so it feels so exaggerated and fake in this line read,” another person wrote.
This person said, “I simply do not have the ability to process KJ Apa’s Jimmy Stewart voice until at least Q1 2026.”
Another person wrote, “sorry we do not have the time to deal with this right now.”
“It’s impossible to do Jimmy Stewart’s voice without sounding like you’re doing a bit,” another person added.
“Jimmy Stewart impression opposite Rob Riggle is not having the intended effect I feel,” someone else wrote.
Others had a lot to say about the teaser’s overall appearance, comparing it to Saturday Night Live sketches or 30 Rock cutaway jokes.
One person suggested the teaser looks like some “30 Rock cutaway joke ass cinema.”
Another person said it “Looks like an SNL skit.”
And finally, this person said, “I think this is the least real any movie has ever looked.”
What do you think about KJ’s voice and the new Jimmy biopic? Share your thoughts in the comments.