Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Chad & JT Go Deep’ on Netflix, Where Two Viral Cali Pranksters Get Stoked On Activism

Chill bro California comedians Chad Kroeger (real name: Tom Allen) and JT Parr get stoked and do activism in Chad & JT Go Deep (Netflix), a six-episode prank comedy series inspired by the duo’s Go Deep podcast and viral YouTube bits where they appear as concerned citizens at city council meetings and advocate for issues like increased partying, a second Independence Day, or the commissioning of a statue honoring late Fast & Furious actor Paul Walker. Can the boys “push the stoke” even in the face of pushback on their dank brand of activism?

CHAD & JT GO DEEP: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: “Chad and JT are activists from Southern California,” a graphic informs us over an image of surfers and the glittering Pacific Ocean. “They have allowed a camera team behind the scenes to document their work.”

The Gist: Yeah, Chad and JT are activists. But what that means in practice is getting random people along the beachwalk to sign a petition “to stop the talking shit about e-scooter riders,” a group that includes themselves. Chad Kroeger – yes, Tom Allen’s character is named after the Nickelback singer, that’s part of the joke –  and JT Parr identify as dudes who love partying, surfing, skating, tanning, being stoked and doing dank shit, which for them translates as consciousness raising about the chiller things in life. After their effort to reverse public comment on e-scooter ridership, the duo and their “squad” pals Strider Wilson (Michael Klimkowski) and Kevin “The Shmole” (Kevin Fard) do a moronic group dance to NSYNC’s “Bye Bye Bye” and prepare another petition, this time to advocate for the protection of “boarders.”

That’s right, “boarders,” not “borders.” But the pedestrians who pause at Chad and JT’s table setup by the beach seem not to notice how the word is spelled on their T-shirts, and instead offer comments on immigration from Mexico and protection of personal property even as the boys constantly insert references to skateboarding. Later, during a bus tour through Hollywood that only highlights shooting locations from the Fast & Furious movies, Chad and JT realize their “protect the boarders” campaign has been misconstrued, and a social media backlash catches them up in a cancel culture wave.

The timing is inopportune. Chad and JT had just been offered a slot to promote their activism during the Las Vegas residency of their pal Zedd. (The electronic music DJ appears here as himself.) But with their cancellation looming, the stokelords must consider the trajectory of their activism, and whether proceeding with it at all would be completely bog or totally dank.

What Shows Will It Remind You Of? The presence of executive producers Tim Heidecker, Eric Wareheim, and Dave Kneebone connects Go Deep to a well of meta comedy experiments, stuff like The Eric Andre Show and Nathan For You (or Fielder’s HBO series The Rehearsal), and Netflix’s Magic for Humans, hosted by magician and comedian Justin Willman. You can throw a bit of Jackass in here, too, mostly in its slacker attitude, and of course the confrontational comedy of Sacha Baron Cohen in Borat.

Our Take: Tom Allen, as Chad, and JT Parr are certainly committed to the bit. In Chad & JT Go Deep, their characters are as earnest as they are detached, like stoners who make no little plans but falter on the perception and follow-through. And that earnestness can mostly make up for wherever the humor becomes so indirect as to be scattershot. It’s funny that the cast plays the friends and acquaintances in Chad and JT’s world with such commitment  – that these two guys really are inspiring hope and change with their disruptive appearances at city council meetings to promote pet issues like the need for more ragers and “public yacht use.” (Even Zedd gets in on the joke. “Your activism,” he says with a meaningful yearn. “I live for it.”) In a later episode entitled “Small Dong Shame,” Chad and JT along with their friend Strider cross Will Ferrell’s “We’re all going streaking!” gag from Old School with Blink-182’s “What’s My Age Again?” music video. “Chad and JT love streaking because of how freeing it is for the soul,” Strider says. “People need that stoke from streaking. Especially at the DMV.” Being so self-serious about something as goofy as running around naked in public is the centerpiece of what Chad and JT are trying to promote. It’s stokedness, not wokeness.

Sex and Skin: In pursuit of their healthiest selves, Chad and JT have taken up “perineum sunning,” a method endorsed by Chad’s health guru, “Troy from Venice.” Constantly in search of a safe space to sun their perineums, the duo get permission from Zedd to use the courtyard of his home, and proceed to drop trou.

Parting Shot: “Unfollow these clowns!”, “Brian and Dom would never…”, “Fast and Furious? More like slow and racist”: With the cancelers on Twitter and Instagram coming for them after the “Protect our Boarders” bit went viral, Chad and JT look lost and glum as Zedd texts to say he’s distancing himself from the duo until it all blows over.

Sleeper Star: Chad and JT’s particular brand of phraseology has trending potential, from their typical city hall greeting of “What up, council?” to calling anyone who is a kindred spirit for their causes a “stokelord.”

Most Pilot-y Line: Chad & JT Go Deep delights in blending Cali bro surfer speak with riffs on philosophy and social justice. “For too long in society, skateboarders have been oppressed!” JT asserts in an Instagram story. And when close friend Strider Wilson is asked his opinion on the duo, it’s like he’s given voice to the artwork of Shepard Fairey. “They’re activists. What does that mean? They’re spreading stoke. These guys are built to create change.”

Our Call: STREAM IT. Clocking in at less than 20 minutes, watching an episode of Chad & JT Go Deep is a low-intensity engagement, which suits the drifty, slacker vibe of their brand of comedy.

Johnny Loftus is an independent writer and editor living at large in Chicagoland. His work has appeared in The Village Voice, All Music Guide, Pitchfork Media, and Nicki Swift. Follow him on Twitter: @glennganges