A Theatrical Experience Exploring His Return to Music, Mushroom Trips, Timeshare Presentations, and Dying Rats
NEW JERSEY | AUGUST 15, 2025: Acclaimed musician and alt-comic Will Wood is set to release “Slouching Towards Branson,” an innovative film that combines live stage performances, music, and stories about characters he encountered during his “big dramatic hiatus”. The film follows Wood’s return to performing with his most extensive tour to date, and will premiere exclusively on Patreon this Friday, August 15th. “Slouching Towards Branson” will be available exclusively via the Will Wood Patreon, free for members, with non-members able to make a one-time purchase.
The film captures Wood’s ambitious theatrical performance piece of the same name, which he developed specifically for his recent tour. Drawing inspiration from Joan Didion’s seminal work “Slouching Towards Bethlehem” and W.B. Yeats’s poem “The Second Coming,” the title references Branson, Missouri, serving as a metaphorical destination in Wood’s unique narrative journey and social commentary.
“Slouching Towards Branson” is more than a concert film or a comedy special. The project weaves together music from across Wood’s discography with semi-fictional storytelling, creating what the artist describes as a piece that exists “a little bit between” mediums. The show explores Wood’s experiences during his creative hiatus through a comedic yet occasionally dramatic lens, touching on personal revelations and absurd encounters, exploring themes of belief, morality, and living through cultural upheaval.
“While my solo performances have always included elements of standup and storytelling, I wanted to weave my music into something with a larger arc,” Wood explains.
Collaborating with filmmaker Jake Feldman, co-creator of Wood’s acclaimed “White Noise” and “Sex Drugs Rock n Roll” music videos, the project was meticulously edited together by Feldman from footage captured at shows during the “Slouching Toward Bethlehem” tour in 2024. The film promises an intimate yet theatrical experience exploring unexpected territory, including “dying rats, mushroom trips, and timeshare presentations.” The show defies expectations about Wood’s reputation as being “intensely private” and “reclusive, because I told my publicist to when I was in a bad mood one day”, but in true Will Wood style, remains ambiguous about the literal truth of the piece.
The release strategy reflects Wood’s commitment to his dedicated fan base, with “Slouching Toward Branson” debuting exclusively on his Patreon platform. The film will be available at no additional cost to existing paid Patreon members, while non-members can purchase access directly through the platform.
“Think if Mike Birbiglia was also Tom Lehrer and then fell off a bike and wasn’t really the same after. Less cagey but also less talented Bo Burnham. Father John Mulaney. It’s about commitment and financial matters and responsible pet ownership, and oh I guess also drugs, but mostly about watching the world you expected to live in as an adult become something you could have never predicted. You know, cultural upheaval and the grief inherent to maturation. I even quote Joan Didion in it. Don’t worry, you don’t have to watch it. Some of you would find this film heinously edgy. But it isn’t, and you’re wrong.” – WW
"Slouching Toward Branson" will be available exclusively via Patreon.com/therealwillwood beginning Friday, August 15th, 2025. Free to paid members, and available to non-members by a one-time purchase
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Suzanne Torrison, Artist Services
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