Sumith Prasad
The filming of Brian Cox and Jennifer Coolidge-starrer ‘Riff Raff’ is scheduled to begin in New Jersey in September. The film revolves around a “former criminal’s ordinary life, which is thrown upside down when his old family shows up for a long-awaited reckoning,” reads the logline. The production received a waiver from SAG-AFTRA to proceed with the casting for the crime comedy.
Having said that, the film hasn’t received a waiver from the union to move forward with the shooting. Garnering the same may not be an option anymore since SAG-AFTRA decided to put an end to approving exemptions to indie projects. Therefore, the shooting in New Jersey may get delayed until the actors’ strike is concluded. One of the pivotal entertainment production hubs on the East Coast, the state of New Jersey has hosted several popular productions such as ‘Oppenheimer,’ ‘Succession,’ ‘John Wick: Chapter 4,’ ‘Severance,’ ‘The Walking Dead: Dead City,’ ‘The Irishman,’ ‘Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,’ etc. for filming over the years.
Dito Montiel, who is known for directing Robert Downey Jr.-starrer ‘A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints,’ is at the helm of the film. His other credits include Channing Tatum-starrer ‘Fighting,’ ‘The Son of No One,’ Dwayne Johnson-starrer ‘Empire State,’ Robin Williams-starrer ‘Boulevard,’ Shia LaBeouf-starrer ‘Man Down,’ and Ed Helms-starrer ‘The Clapper.’ John Pollono, who is best known for writing Jake Gyllenhaal-starrer ‘Stronger’ and Jon Bernthal-starrer ‘Small Engine Repair,’ penned the movie.
Cox is joining the production after concluding his portrayal of Logan Roy in ‘Succession.’ He recently completed filming Anthony and Joe Russo’s Chris Pratt-starrer ‘The Electric State’ and Craig Johnson’s ‘The Parenting.’ His recent credits include Nicholas Booker in ‘The Independent,’ Ike Fletcher in ‘Mending the Line,’ Max in ‘Prisoner’s Daughter,’ Paul Rivers in ‘Separation,’ etc.
Coolidge is joining the movie upon winning an Emmy for her performance as Tanya McQuoid-Hunt in HBO’s drama series ‘The White Lotus.’ Her recent credits include Judy Romano in Netflix’s horror comedy film ‘We Have a Ghost,’ Carol Fowler in Prime Video’s action film ‘Shotgun Wedding,’ Karen Calhoun in Netflix’s mystery series ‘The Watcher,’ Aunt Sandy in ‘Single All the Way,’ Miriam Hale in ‘Royalties,’ and Susan in Carey Mulligan-starrer ‘Promising Young Woman.’
Academy Award-winner Dustin Hoffman and Gabrielle Union are also part of the cast. The recent credits of Hoffman, who won the Best Actor Oscar twice for his performances in ‘Kramer vs. Kramer’ and ‘Rain Man,’ includes Bill in ‘Sam & Kate,’ Eugene in ‘As They Made Us,’ Harold in Noah Baumbach’s ‘The Meyerowitz Stories,’ Bob Hamman in ‘The Program,’ etc. The legendary actor is also known for his performances in ‘The Graduate,’ ‘Midnight Cowboy,’ ‘Tootsie,’ ‘Straw Dogs,’ and ‘All the President’s Men.’ Union, on the other hand, is known for portraying Inez French in ‘The Inspection,’ Jenna in ‘The Perfect Find,’ Eva in ‘Truth Be Told,’ Syd in ‘Bad Boys II,’ Chastity in ‘10 Things I Hate About You,’ etc.
Canopy Media Partners’ Noah Rothman (‘Small Engine Repair’) and Signature Films’ Marc Goldberg and Sarah Gabriel (‘The Estate’) produce the film. “We are thrilled to partner with the producers and Dito on this project; we’ve loved it ever since we read it. It embodies the type of crime comedies we grew up with – witty and entertaining. Not to mention the perfect cast that will bring these colorful characters to life,” Goldberg said about the project in a statement. Cox and Coolidge serve as executive producers along with Adam Paulsen, Pollono, Chris Dennis, Christian Mercuri, and Mathew Lesher.
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