Netflix’s Norm Macdonald documentary arrives Oct. 16

Netflix will release Norm: The Tale of Norm Macdonald, a documentary directed by Judd Apatow about the late Quebec City-born comedian, on Oct. 16, the day before what would have been his 67th birthday.

The film is built entirely from archival footage, personal photos and rare home videos contributed by fans and friends, Netflix said in its announcement on X, and lets Macdonald tell his own story in his own voice. Consequence reported that it is one of four October documentaries Netflix is releasing about classic comedians.

Netflix describes the film as “an intimate portrait of one of comedy’s most singular voices” and “a tribute to a comic genius whose influence on stand-up and television comedy remains unmatched,” according to the streamer’s press material as quoted by Consequence.

Macdonald was born Oct. 17, 1959, in Quebec City, where his parents worked at CFB Valcartier, and grew up there and in Ottawa, according to Wikipedia. JoBlo reported that he started out doing stand-up in Canadian clubs in the 1980s. He died Sept. 14, 2021, in Duarte, Calif., at age 61.

He anchored the “Weekend Update” segment on Saturday Night Live starting in 1994 and was removed as anchor effective with the Jan. 10, 1998, episode, according to Wikipedia. JoBlo reported that the move followed his jokes about O.J. Simpson during Simpson’s murder trial and a request from NBC executive Don Ohlmeyer. Neither Netflix nor the outlets we read said how the documentary treats that episode.

His other work included co-writing and starring in the 1998 film Dirty Work, starring in the sitcom The Norm Show and voicing Lucky the dog in the Doctor Dolittle films, JoBlo reported. The outlet also said a new Macdonald biography by Kliph Nesteroff is in the works.

The trailer, which Netflix released in September, is styled as a viewer searching YouTube for Macdonald clips, The A.V. Club reported on Sept. 22. It names friends of Macdonald as participants but, in the coverage we read, does not list them.

Canadian availability has not been confirmed. Netflix’s announcement and the weekly schedule published Oct. 12 by What’s on Netflix, which covers the U.S. service, do not say whether the film streams in Canada on the same day. Netflix’s Canadian catalogue is the place to check on Oct. 16.

Via Netflix, Consequence, JoBlo and The A.V. Club.

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