There are movies that you can pin-point as the moment that made something famous. For the mockumentary genre, it is This Is Spinal Tap. And for that, I owe Rob Reiner a lot. Because it helped make shows like Parks and Recreation a reality.
Prior to the release of This Is Spinal Tap, the “mockumentary” genre wasn’t really a thing. There were instances with it and the idea of a mockumentary dates back to the 60s but it isn’t the same as it is now. It was movies like This Is Spinal Tap that gave rise to shows like The Office which helped bring the style of comedy to television.
