--- title: "Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/gail-daughtry-and-the-celebrity-sex-pass/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/gail-daughtry-and-the-celebrity-sex-pass" critics_score: 68 critics_reviews: 16 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass (2026): what the critics said Critics' score 68 from 16 reviews: 10 positive, 4 mixed, 2 negative. Most critics find Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass an enjoyably silly comedy, with praise clustering around its rapid-fire jokes and committed cast. Zoey Deutch is the clearest point of agreement: even some less enthusiastic reviews credit her sunny, spirited performance with keeping the absurdity afloat. John Slattery’s self-mocking turn also draws repeated praise. Supporters enjoy the mixture of warmth and vulgarity, and the willingness to keep pushing a ridiculous gag. The spread is wide, however, and those prolonged jokes help explain the divide. Vulture finds that shared laughter in a cinema makes them funnier; The AV Club sees weak jokes, an unwieldy ensemble and a drawn-out subplot. Between those positions, reservations centre on uneven pacing, thin characterisation and a scattershot story. Even several favourable reviews concede that jokes miss or the film feels slight. The consensus favours the laughs, without agreeing on how much slack they earn. ## Empire — Chris Hewitt Fi1m's normalised score 95/100 (inferred from the text). 4 September 2026. The critic calls it arguably the funniest film of the year and urges audiences not to miss it. Zoey Deutch is singled out as the film’s comic heart, deftly handling its tonal shifts. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/gail-daughtry-and-the-celebrity-sex-pass/) ## IndieWire — Christian Zilko Rating A-. 7 July 2026. Festival review. Zilko calls the film one of David Wain’s funniest, praising its rapid-fire jokes and precise blend of wholesomeness and vulgarity. He singles out John Slattery’s self-deprecating performance as a standout among the celebrity cameos. [Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/gail-daughtry-and-the-celebrity-sex-pass-movie-review-1235175438/) ## The Hollywood Reporter — Richard Lawson Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 26 January 2026. Festival review. Lawson finds the film a welcome, gleefully silly comedy, despite some jokes missing and the pacing sagging. He especially praises its oddball humor, including a hotel concierge bit and a riotously repetitive slapstick sequence. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/gail-daughtry-and-the-celebrity-sex-pass-review-david-wain-1236484782/) ## Variety — Owen Gleiberman Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 26 January 2026. Festival review. Gleiberman finds the comedy succeeds at its main goal of making audiences laugh, while also offering a nostalgic satire of Hollywood. He especially praises John Slattery’s increasingly deranged, triumphant performance. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2026/film/reviews/gail-daughtry-and-the-celebrity-sex-pass-review-zoey-deutch-1236640546/) ## Vulture — Fran Hoepfner Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 28 January 2026. Festival review. Hoepfner argues that the film is best experienced with a theater audience and celebrates its return to form. She especially praises how the crowd’s laughter makes the film’s deliberately prolonged jokes funnier. [Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/article/gail-daughtry-and-the-celebrity-sex-pass-theatrical-release.html) ## Los Angeles Times — Amy Nicholson Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 8 July 2026. Nicholson finds the comedy deliriously zany and charming, though its Oz allusions can become distracting. She especially praises Zoey Deutch’s spirited performance and the film’s rapid-fire jokes. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2026-07-08/gail-daughtry-celebrity-sex-pass-review-zoey-deutch-jon-hamm-ken-marino-john-slattery-david-wain) ## Slant Magazine — Taylor Williams Rating 2.5/4. 5 July 2026. Williams finds the comedy uneven but warmed by an irreverent, affectionate sensibility. They praise Zoey Deutch’s spirited balance of Midwestern naïveté and blunt sexual conviction. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/gail-daughtry-and-the-celebrity-sex-pass-review-zoey-deutch/) ## The Guardian — Benjamin Lee Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 27 January 2026. Festival review. Lee finds the comedy silly and often funny, but too scattershot and underdeveloped to be a rousing success. He singles out several recurring gags and the committed cast as sources of infectious fun. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/jan/27/gail-daughtry-and-the-celebrity-sex-pass-review) ## The Observer — Wendy Ide Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 6 September 2026. Ide finds the comedy exceptionally silly but says it earns a few laughs. She singles out Zoey Deutch’s sunny performance as a saving grace. [Read the review](https://observer.co.uk/culture/film/article/film-reviews-the-incomer) ## The AV Club — Jacob Oller Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 9 July 2026. Oller finds the spoof unfocused and too reliant on weak, anti-comedic jokes. He praises Zoey Deutch’s performance as an unflappable, sunny lead, while saying the sprawling ensemble and drawn-out subplot bog the film down. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/gail-daughtry-and-the-celebrity-sex-pass-review) ## Screen Daily — Amber Wilkinson Fi1m's normalised score 25/100 (inferred from the text). 26 January 2026. Festival review. The critic’s headline verdict is that the film is limp. The review identifies Zoey Deutch’s lead performance in an LA-set sex parody as its focus. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/gail-daughtry-and-the-celebrity-sex-pass-review-zoey-deutch-heads-limp-la-set-sex-parody/5213013.article) ## Den of Geek — David Crow Rating 4/5. 7 July 2026. The critic finds the film slight and frivolous but wickedly funny, calling it Hollywood hokum at its finest. Zoey Deutch’s charismatic, fearless performance is singled out for keeping the absurd comedy buoyant. [Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/gail-daughtry-and-the-celebrity-sex-pass-review-wholesome-hollywood-filth/) ## The Wrap Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 26 January 2026. Festival review. The critic calls the film dumb fun and a welcome breath of fresh air in mainstream comedy. They single out Zoey Deutch’s performance and the ensemble’s commitment to its absurd humor. [Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/gail-daughtry-and-the-celebrity-sex-pass-review-sundance/) ## Collider — Ross Bonaime Rating 7/10. 30 January 2026. Festival review. Bonaime finds the film a delightfully ludicrous and charming return to David Wain and Ken Marino’s comic style. He especially praises John Slattery’s straight-faced, scene-stealing performance as himself. [Read the review](https://collider.com/gail-daughtry-and-the-celebrity-sex-pass-review-david-wain-jon-hamm-sundance/) ## Deadline — Glenn Garner Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 26 January 2026. Festival review. The critic finds the film a delightfully silly, joke-packed return to the mid-budget comedy style of the aughts. They single out Zoey Deutch for landing the jokes and praise the supporting cast’s fit with the parody. [Read the review](https://deadline.com/2026/01/gail-daughtry-and-the-celebrity-sex-pass-review-zoey-deutch-1236690984/) ## The Playlist — Marshall Shaffer Rating C+. 27 January 2026. Festival review. Shaffer finds the comedy an entertaining but unfocused disappointment, often landing on the wrong side of the line between dumb fun and simply dumb. He praises Wain’s willingness to push an inspired gag past cringe into something sublime, while noting Zoey Deutch’s performance helps compensate for thin characterization. [Read the review](https://theplaylist.net/gail-daughtry-the-celebrity-sex-pass-review-david-wains-latest-comedic-effort-is-unfocused-dumb-fun-sundance-20260127/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/gail-daughtry-and-the-celebrity-sex-pass.md