You’ve probably seen the posters. Or maybe you caught a clip on TikTok of two grown men in identical suits screaming at each other in a boardroom. It’s loud, it’s garish, and it’s unapologetically weird. When people start looking up the cast of Dicks: The Musical, they usually fall into one of two camps: they’re either lifelong fans of the original off-off-Broadway fringe show Fcking Identical Twins*, or they just saw the A24 logo and wondered how on earth Nathan Lane ended up in a movie with "Sewage Boys."
This isn't your standard movie musical. It’s a bizarro-world version of The Parent Trap filtered through a fever dream. The casting is the primary reason the movie even functions. Without this specific mix of legendary theater royalty and chaotic internet comedians, the whole thing would have collapsed under the weight of its own absurdity. Honestly, it’s a miracle it got made at all.
The Duo at the Center: Aaron Jackson and Josh Sharp
The heart of the cast of Dicks: The Musical is the pair who actually wrote the thing. Aaron Jackson and Josh Sharp play Craig and Trevor, two self-obsessed, hyper-masculine businessmen who discover they are long-lost identical twins.
Here’s the catch: they look absolutely nothing alike.
That’s the first joke of the movie, and it sets the tone for everything that follows. Jackson and Sharp spent years honing these characters at the Upright Citizens Brigade (UCB) in New York. If you feel like their timing is eerily synced up, it’s because they’ve performed this material hundreds of times in tiny, sweaty basements long before A24 ever cut them a check. They aren't trying to be "good" actors in the traditional sense; they are playing caricatured monsters.
Their energy is exhausting. It’s high-octane, screechy, and deeply committed. In an era where most film comedies feel a bit polished and safe, Jackson and Sharp bring an amateurish (in the best way) energy that feels like it belongs on public access television at 3:00 AM.
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The Broadway Royalty: Nathan Lane and Megan Mullally
This is where the movie gets its legitimacy. If you’re going to make a movie about "Dicks," you apparently need to hire the greatest stage actors of a generation. Nathan Lane plays Harris, the twins' long-lost father. Lane is a three-time Tony Award winner, and seeing him transition from The Producers to a role where he lives in a cluttered apartment with "Sewage Boys" (we'll get to them) is jarring.
He plays the role with a strange, quiet pathos that somehow makes the surrounding insanity even funnier. He’s not "winking" at the camera. He’s playing it straight.
Then there’s Megan Mullally. Most people know her as Karen Walker from Will & Grace, but she’s a seasoned musical theater veteran. She plays the twins' mother, Evelyn. Her performance is... a lot. She spends much of the film in a motorized wheelchair, wearing a variety of increasingly bizarre prosthetics and outfits. Her character has a "vagina that flew away," which is a plot point I am not making up.
The chemistry between Lane and Mullally provides the anchor. They represent the "prestige" side of the cast of Dicks: The Musical, and their ability to treat this ridiculous script with the same reverence they’d give Chekhov is exactly why the comedy lands.
Why the Supporting Cast Matters
- Bowen Yang as God: Yes, the Saturday Night Live star plays the Almighty. But he’s not a burning bush or a booming voice. He’s a frustrated, somewhat petty deity who is over the whole "humanity" project. It’s a cameo that could have felt like filler, but Yang’s specific brand of dry humor fits the A24 aesthetic perfectly.
- Megan Thee Stallion as The Boss: In perhaps the most inspired casting choice of the decade, Megan Thee Stallion plays the high-powered CEO of the company where the twins work. She gets a full-blown musical number that feels like a high-budget music video dropped into the middle of a low-budget comedy. She commands the screen. You can tell she’s having the time of her life playing a demanding, terrifying corporate executive.
- The Sewage Boys: These are puppets. They are horrifying, fleshy, mutant puppets created by the legendary Adrien Morot (who worked on The Whale). They live in Harris’s apartment and are, quite frankly, the stuff of nightmares. They are voiced by Jackson and Sharp, adding another layer of "what am I watching?" to the experience.
Director Larry Charles and the Quest for Chaos
You can't talk about the cast without mentioning the man behind the camera. Larry Charles directed Borat. He directed Bruno. He was a key writer on Seinfeld. He knows how to handle "uncomfortable."
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Charles reportedly encouraged the cast to push their performances into the red zone. He didn't want a "clean" musical. He wanted something that felt dangerous. This is why the cast of Dicks: The Musical feels so unhinged. There is very little "movie acting" happening here. It’s theater acting captured on digital film.
The production design reflects this too. It’s colorful and bright, almost like a children's show, which creates a sharp contrast with the R-rated dialogue and themes. It’s a visual representation of the "Dicks" persona: loud, colorful, and completely full of itself.
Addressing the "Cult" Factor
Is this movie for everyone? Absolutely not. It’s a niche product for a very specific audience. If you enjoy The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, or the surrealist humor of Tim and Eric, you’ll likely find the cast's performances brilliant. If you’re looking for a heartfelt, traditional musical like The Sound of Music, you are going to be deeply confused.
The film leans into its "cult" status. It doesn't apologize for its gross-out humor or its nonsensical plot. The cast is fully aware of what they are making. There’s a certain bravery in Nathan Lane and Megan Mullally signing on for this. They don't need the money or the exposure. They did it because the script was weird.
In a Hollywood landscape dominated by sequels and "safe" IP, seeing a major studio-adjacent entity like A24 throw money at a musical about "Dicks" is refreshing. It’s a swing. It might be a miss for the general public, but for the people who "get" it, it’s a home run.
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The Music and the Performances
The songs are catchy. That’s the problem. You’ll find yourself humming "Lonely Town" or "I’ll Always Be There" at the grocery store before realizing the lyrics are incredibly inappropriate.
Josh Sharp and Aaron Jackson aren't just comedians; they can actually sing. Their background in musical theater shows through the layers of irony. They understand the tropes of the genre—the "I Want" song, the 11 o'clock number, the romantic duet—and they subvert every single one of them.
The choreography is intentionally simplistic. It feels like something two kids would put together in their garage, which fits the "identical twin" theme. It’s synchronized but slightly off. It’s energetic but messy.
How to Approach Watching Dicks: The Musical
If you’re planning to dive into this, go in with zero expectations. Don't try to make sense of the plot. Don't worry about the logic of the "Sewage Boys." Just watch the cast of Dicks: The Musical and appreciate the sheer commitment on display.
- Watch the original UCB clips: If you can find them on YouTube, look for Jackson and Sharp’s early work. It helps you appreciate how far they’ve come and how much of the original DNA remains in the film.
- Pay attention to the background: The set is filled with weird details that tell a story of their own, especially in Harris’s apartment.
- Don't skip the credits: There are often little nuggets of humor hidden in the tail end of these types of productions.
- Listen to the soundtrack first: If you aren't sure if the humor is for you, listen to a couple of tracks on Spotify. If you aren't laughing within thirty seconds, the movie won't change your mind.
The film represents a specific moment in comedy where the "alt" scene finally got a massive platform. Whether it’s the start of a new wave of surrealist musicals or just a bizarre one-off remains to be seen. Either way, the cast earned their place in the history of "weird cinema."
To get the most out of the experience, look for the "making of" interviews with Larry Charles. He speaks extensively about the challenges of translating a stage show with two actors playing every role into a full-scale movie with a celebrity ensemble. It provides a lot of context for why the movie looks and feels the way it does. You can also track the career trajectories of the Sewage Boys' puppeteers, as their work here is some of the most unique practical effects work in recent years.
Next Steps for the Viewer: Check out the official A24 behind-the-scenes featurettes to see how the "Sewage Boys" puppets were operated. If you're a fan of the music, the original cast recording is available on all major streaming platforms, featuring the full versions of Megan Thee Stallion's "Out of the Bin" and the twins' various duets. For those interested in the history of the show, search for archival footage of Fcking Identical Twins* to see the evolution from the UCB stage to the big screen.