Posted in: Exclusive, Interview, Movies, Paramount Pictures | Tagged: Preschool

Preschool Star Josh Duhamel on Directing, Socha, Pickleball & More

Josh Duhamel (Transformers) spoke to us about directing and starring in the Republic Pictures/Paramount comedy Preschool, Socha & more.

For the better portion of his career, Josh Duhamel has generally been known for his serious work, like his time on Paramount's Transformers franchise, horror cult classic Turistas (2006), and the Relativity drama Safe Haven (2013). In recent years, he's embraced more comedy and dabbled in directing with Disney+'s The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers, the raunchy Paramount comedy Buddy Games: Spring Awakening (2023), and the Quiver buddy action comedy London Calling (2025). His latest is the Paramount/Republic Pictures Preschool, which follows two dads (Duhamel & Michael Socha), who set their sights on the last open spot at an ultra-posh preschool in London. What begins as a simple application snowballs into a wildly escalating rivalry packed with big-hearted laughs, outrageous one‐upmanship, and surprising consequences. As schemes spiral and families get pulled into the madness, both fathers discover what they're really willing to do for their kids—and what it means to be a parent. Duhamel spoke to Bleeding Cool about working with writers Nicole and Richard D'Ovidio and what appealed to him about their script, why Socha's straight approach to comedy was ideal for the film, the overly competitive world of parents micromanaging their children's education, and his most difficult scenes.

Preschool Director and Star Josh Duhamel Discusses the Slice of Life Comedy

BC: What did you like about Richard and Nicole's script?
Duhamel: I love the relatability of it. I felt like it was such a refreshing take on something so prevalent in this process that parents go through when trying to get their kids started off in their life of education. It was a really fun and honest take on how crazy we can be as parents sometimes, when all we really want is the best for our kids.

What made you decide that preschool was going to be your next project to direct? Was it really difficult for you to be able to wear those multiple hats as a director and an actor?
Well, I was looking for something. I love directing comedy, and I was looking for something like that because I find it so much more fun. If I'm going to spend two years of my life on something, I want it to be fun, and I find that comedy is a great way to do that. It's always fun to come up with great little bits that make me, and hopefully everybody, laugh. That was one that I felt like I'd wrapped my head around, bent through, and I understood it. The hardest part about it is just getting in front of the camera while also directing. It can be tricky because you're in a scene with the fellow actors, but you're also directing the scene.

You must be using both sides of your brain, and it can be [chuckles] a lot of mental gymnastics, especially when you can't see what is being shot. You have an idea, because you saw the monitor before, but then you must let that go and trust that your producers have your back. That's probably the most difficult part, just relinquishing some control and trusting that everyone around you has got your back.

Did you have any personal experiences that you drew from in your life that you infused into this story?
Yeah, I think any parent can relate to the lengths you'll go to make sure your kids are safe and have the best shot. Oftentimes, we think it's for their benefit, but oftentimes it's not. We're better off letting them go off and make mistakes on their own, but that's a hard thing to do as a parent. You must trust they're going to be okay, and trust that you taught them the right things to make strong decisions. That it's more of a 30,000-foot answer to the question, but particularly…I don't know if there's anything specific.

What did you like about working with Michael and building up that comedic rapport like Alan and Brian?
Right off the bat, I knew that this guy, Michael Socha, was a heavyweight when it came to his drama stuff. He is great. I loved how honest and sort of…he didn't even feel like he was acting in the stuff that I saw. I was like, "This guy's really good, and I think that he's funny too!" I couldn't really tell. He seemed to have a dry sense of humor, but I trusted that. I think some of the funniest actors are dramatic ones, honestly, because they don't try to be funny, they just are. This guy is naturally very funny. That was a good bet, and I'm glad I did it because there were a couple of other people that we liked that were more comedic actors, but I wanted somebody who's going to play the real of this and then find the humor in the real from a grounded place.

What is your most difficult scene to film in Preschool? I imagine that was probably the martial arts takedown on Alan or the pickleball scene, but in your opinion, what was the most difficult scene?
The pickleball scene was the very first day, and that was tough because it is tricky. You've got to make sure there's a lot of coverage, you've got to make it feel like a real back and forth, and the one shot that I wanted to get was that wide shot of the two of them falling back and forth. I had to talk to people on the paddleball court to give us five more minutes to get that shot. Thank God they did, because that to me is one of the funniest parts of the movie. The hardest scene in the movie, though, to shoot was the whole "Wild and Crazies" concert thing, because we had like half a day to shoot it. We didn't have nearly enough time, and I had to get a lot of coverage for that too, because then you've got the TV version and behind-the-scenes version. You've got the stuff happening backstage, everything happening on stage, and the musical elements, so that was probably the most stressful bit because we have so little time to get it done.

Preschool, which also stars Antonia Thomas, Charity Wakefield, James Cosmo, and Fanella Woolgar, is available on digital
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