Wiig and Hader Shine in ‘The Skeleton Twins’

Greg Vellante

Imagine this: After estranged twin siblings coincidentally cheat death on the same day, they reunite in hopes of mending their relationship. Filmmaker Craig Johnson (True Adolescents) artfully tackles that premise in his new feature The Skeleton Twins. Co-written by Johnson and Mark Heyman (Black Swan), the script presents an intriguing setup for drama, but with “Saturday Night Live” alumni Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader starring as twins Maggie and Milo, the film is guaranteed to deliver some laughs as well.

The Skeleton Twins offers a great pathway for two actors known essentially for their comedic work to explore more dramatic territory. Hader has driven many belly laughs on “SNL” with his gay fashionista character Stefan, who made countless appearances on Weekend Update segments. He has also played supporting fiddle in comedic movies, often stealing scenes in films like Superbad and Adventureland. Through the character of Milo, Hader now assumes a homosexual identity that’s far more grounded than Stefan, as Milo is less about laughs and more about honesty. As a gay man who strives to be a famous actor, Milo may be Hader’s most rounded character in a film to date. Audiences can also expect Wiig to pull out the big guns. While she has strongly proven herself in comedy, Wiig has also done dramatic turns, such as in the Ryan Gosling film All Good Things. The Skeleton Twins may just change all our expectations of these two comedy icons. After making viewers cry with laughter, Hader and Wiig will be pleased to simply make us cry.

The Skeleton Twins opens in theatres on September 12.