Watch clip of Chiefs’ Travis Kelce in new John C. Reilly comedy series ‘Moonbase 8’
Chiefs fans will get a double dose of Travis Kelce on Sunday. At noon, the Chiefs will play the Panthers at Arrowhead Stadium.
Then, Kelce will appear in the first episode of “Moonbase 8,” which debuts Sunday at 10 p.m. on Showtime.
This is a description of the comedy from Showtime: “Fred Armisen, Tim Heidecker and John C. Reilly star in this new comedy series as three astronauts stationed at NASA’s Moon Base Simulator in a remote part of the Arizona desert. While working vigorously to qualify for their first lunar mission, they encounter many obstacles including loneliness, self-doubt and their own incompetence. In spite of it all, they remain determined to prove they have the right stuff to reach the moon.”
Arrowhead Pride said Kelce plays himself in the show as NASA wanted a famous athlete to be at the Moon Base Simulator.
The show has received mixed reviews, and most don’t mention Kelce, but here is what has been written about him.
Josh Bell of CBR.com wrote: “Amateur actor Kelce, playing himself as a bullying jock, may give the funniest performance, because he’s the only person on the show not underplaying all the humor.”
Dannette Chavez of AV Club wrote: “Each member of the group primarily goes by a call name ... save for Travis Kelce, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end who throws his weight around like they’re already on the moon ... Kelce’s presence is tantamount to stunt casting (by NASA, not Showtime), but even he quickly finds himself out of his depth.”
The Ringer’s Miles Surrey wrote: “One of those other astronauts-in-training is Travis Kelce — yes, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce — playing himself. (Though Kelce is actually quite funny, he’s very mean to John C. Reilly, which should be a criminal offense.)
Here is a clip from the show in which the would-be astronauts try drinking a “clean” version of their own urine:
It’s possible the show was filmed more than 19 months ago because Kelce told the Cleveland Plain-Dealer in January 2019 he would “make an appearance on a yet-to-be-named show that includes actor and producer John C. Reilly.”
“We really don’t know what network will pick it up, but I got to work with John C. Reilly,” Kelce told the Plain-Dealer. “I already knew John was one of the most talented people in the acting world, and to see it live and to be in a scene with him was unreal.”
This will be a one-time appearance for Kelce, and fans may not want to stick around for the whole episode.
“(T)he way that (Kelce) exits the show points to a darker sense of humor than ultimately plays out,” wrote Bell of CBR.com.
