Melissa McCarthy (“Bridesmaids”) and Academy Award® winner Susan Sarandon (“Dead Man Walking”) star in New Line Cinema’s comedy “Tammy,” marking Ben Falcone’s directorial debut.
After losing her job, husband and car in one day, Tammy Banks (Melissa McCarthy) wants out of her small town existence. With no money or transportation, her only way out is with her hard-partying grandmother, Pearl (Susan Sarandon). Their misadventures and brushes with the law lead them on a funny and heartfelt road trip to remember.
The film also stars Allison Janney (“The Help”), playing Tammy’s world-weary mom, Deb; Gary Cole (TV’s “VEEP”) as ladies’ man Earl; and Mark Duplass (HBO’s “Togetherness”) as his son, Bobby; with Dan Aykroyd (“The Campaign”) as Tammy’s dad, Don; and Academy Award® winner Kathy Bates (“Misery,” “Midnight in Paris”) as Pearl’s fun-loving cousin Lenore. Rounding out the cast are Sandra Oh (TV’’s “Grey’s Anatomy”) as Lenore’s partner, Susanne; Oscar® nominee Toni Collette (“The Sixth Sense”) as Tammy’s neighbor, Missi; and Nat Faxon (“Bad Teacher”) as Tammy’s husband, Greg.
The screenplay is by Melissa McCarthy & Ben Falcone. Will Ferrell and Adam McKay produced the film with McCarthy. Rob Cowan, Falcone, Chris Henchy, Kevin Messick, Toby Emmerich, Richard Brener and Michael Disco served as executive producers.
The behind-the-scenes team included director of photography Russ Alsobrook (“Paul Blart: Mall Cop”), production designer Jefferson Sage (“This is 40”), and editor Mike Sale (“Bridesmaids”). The music is by Michael Andrews (“Bad Teacher”).
New Line Cinema presents, a Gary Sanchez/On the Day production, “Tammy.” The film will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment company.
ABOUT THE PRODUCTION
Road trips are a tradition of comedy films, but in the hands of married duo Ben Falcone and Melissa McCarthy, their new movie, “Tammy,” is anything but a traditional road trip.
Falcone and McCarthy have been writing comedy material together since their early days as Groundlings, where they met. “Tammy” marks the couple’s first collaboration on the big screen as writers. It is also Falcone’s feature directorial debut, and McCarthy’s first foray into producing.
“I guess you could say it was literally a dream come true,” says Falcone, who reveals that the idea sprang from a dream he described to McCarthy about going on a crazy road trip with her grandmother. “I always love writing with Melissa, but to get to direct her was incredible because she’s so talented and, of course, funny.”
McCarthy shares, “Ben and I had always talked about writing a movie about real people who mess up and have to decide if they are going to keep making mistakes or change things. Since Ben has been directing theatre and comedy videos for years, we felt it was a natural progression for him to direct “Tammy.”
Falcone and McCarthy mined their own Midwest backgrounds to create a string of colorful characters and situations that revolve around a working-class woman who gets trapped on an interminable road trip with her rather atypical grandmother.
Producers Will Ferrell and Adam McKay were already fans of Falcone and McCarthy and were eager to work with the pair.
McKay states, “Melissa is one of the funniest people on the planet and Ben is a super-talented, hilarious guy. As a producer, this meant two things: we would have a very funny and unique movie, and I would not have to work as hard because they are so good.”
Ferrell adds, “Melissa has made me laugh hard for a long time, so when I heard it was her and Susan Sarandon in a car having wild adventures, I wanted in.”
Sarandon, who stars opposite McCarthy as Tammy’s irrepressible grandma, Pearl, was drawn to the raucous road trip that Tammy and her grandmother take, which, surprisingly, becomes an emotional journey. “The script had such energy and was flamboyant in its freedom,” she conveys. “I liked that all the absurd things they go through give Pearl and Tammy the opportunity to look at where they are in their lives and take it up a notch.”
McCarthy and Sarandon are just two pieces of what turned into an all-star ensemble, including Allison Janney, Gary Cole, Mark Duplass, Sandra Oh, Dan Aykroyd and Kathy Bates. Falcone also brought fellow Groundlings Nat Faxon, Steve Little and Sarah Baker to the mix. With such a deep talent pool, he encouraged improvisation from his entire cast to extract even more humor from Tammy and Pearl’s misadventure.
As the two women take to the highway, everything that can go wrong does, and then some, forcing them to face each other’s flaws as well as their own…and put out a few fires along the way.
McCarthy says, “If you’re having a terrible day and something ridiculous makes you laugh, that’s the best. We wanted to capture that feeling.”
Falcone adds, “Tammy is not only having a terrible day, she’s having one huge, epic bad day and a whole lot of ridiculousness ensues. We had a lot of fun with that.”
Behind the Dash
PEARL
Would you like a beer?
TAMMY
Pearl
Oh my god, you’re knocked up.
TAMMY
No. I’m driving a car. Duh.
Nothing says ridiculous like mouth-to-mouth with a deer. That’s exactly how Tammy’s epic bad day starts out after colliding with the unfortunate creature on a deserted highway on her way to work. The deer isn’t the only impact on her day. Her creepy boss at Topper Jack’s burger joint also blindsides Tammy by firing her.
Falcone notes, “We’re immediately clued into the fact that Tammy usually takes the easy road, does the minimum required to get by. And that ripples throughout the rest of her world.”
McCarthy describes Tammy as “underdeveloped, stunted, and immature. She’s a train wreck. But with a good heart.”
Echoing that sentiment, Falcone says, “Tammy does have a good heart and so does Melissa. I think that quality is what makes Melissa so appealing to audiences. It really shines through her character.”
“My inspiration for Tammy came from an amalgamation of regular people I’ve known or observed just living their lives. Only jacked-up a little,” McCarthy admits. “Tammy hates her life, or lack thereof, but instead of changing it, blames everyone else. She just can’t get out of her own way.”
If Tammy thought her crappy day couldn’t get any worse, she’s sadly mistaken. When she finally drags through the door of her house, she finds her husband, Greg, played by Nat Faxon, having a romantic interlude with her neighbor, played by Toni Collette.
Falcone observes, “This is already the worst day of her life. We wanted to slam Tammy with enough to make her have to physically leave. There’s nowhere left for her to hide from her problems.”
So Tammy tries to get out of town, turning to her mom for comfort—and a loaner car.
Falcone and McCarthy both pictured Allison Janney for the role of Tammy’s mother, Deb. Falcone says, “We love Allison’s work and knew she would be perfect so we wrote the part with her in mind.”
“Allison is brilliant. We weren’t sure she’d do it so we plied her with several margaritas,” McCarthy jokes.
“They could have had me at one,” Janney counters, laughing. “Deb is a complicated, lovely woman, and can’t catch a break with her mother or her daughter. She’s frustrated that she doesn’t understand them and they don’t understand her, so she’s at a point where she’s going to try tough love with Tammy.”
Deb’s husband, Don, would rather get tough with Tammy’s cheating husband. Falcone cast Dan Aykroyd in the role of Tammy’s father. Falcone comments, “As a comedian, I’ve always looked up to Dan, so it was a thrill to work with him.”
Aykroyd says, “I loved working with Ben and Melissa. They’re a great team—genuinely gifted, true professionals.” Aykroyd also relished working with Janney, noting, “Allison is a veteran, a pro who immediately conveyed with simple gestures a feeling of affection and that we’d known each other for the decades Don and Deb have been married.”
“I have to thank Ben and Melissa for giving me Dan,” says Janney. “He’s the best on-screen husband I’ve ever had.”
Deb’s new tough love program begins with denying Tammy transportation. Knowing her granddaughter won’t get far without wheels, Pearl then seizes upon the opportunity to blackmail Tammy with the keys to her Buick sedan. And since Pearl controls the car and cash, she also controls the destination: Niagara Falls.
Starring as Pearl, Susan Sarandon says she loved the grandma-with-a-past role. “Pearl is smart but she’s wild, definitely a product of the sex, drugs, and rock ‘n roll generation. She had a baby really young, and then her daughter had a baby really young. But she disappeared from Tammy’s life at a critical time, and Tammy resented it. So now they’re stuck in a car together and will finally have to work all that out.”
Falcone comments, “It was amazing to watch Susan bring these layers to Pearl. Pearl has definitely partied and had her fun, but she is also really smart and grounded.”
“Susan is just cool,” says McCarthy. “She came in with no judgment of Pearl and her wild past. She said, ‘It is what it is,’ and I think that approach is what makes Pearl so interesting, vibrant, and sexy.”
Pearl packs light, bringing only the bare necessities on the road: cash, booze and her crocheting.
“Pearl is always carrying around her booze and her rugs and trying to score,” attests Sarandon, who learned to make rugs like her own grandmother for the role. The rug Sarandon was actually making in the scenes kept getting bigger and bigger.
Sarandon felt that McCarthy provided an equally layered character to work off. “Melissa commits so completely,” she remarks. “She’s great with silly physical humor but she doesn’t patronize her characters. You recognize some of your own frailties in the mistakes that Tammy makes.”
The most recent mistake is going in the wrong direction, which takes them far afield. Tammy is ready to throw in the towel almost immediately and head home but Pearl challenges her to stop whining about missing life and get one.
Not one to back down from a dare, Tammy finds herself at a happening country-western bar. But instead of getting lucky, Tammy is lucky if she’ll be able to pry Pearl away from Earl, a random guy who ends up locked in the Buick with Pearl, fogging up the windows.
Gary Cole, who stars as Earl, says he jumped at the chance to work with both Sarandon and McCarthy. “You put Melissa in a situation where her character’s going to get in trouble, with a lot of obstacles, and you know some gold is going to happen. That, and making out with Susan Sarandon,” he laughs. “It was really a no-brainer to say, ‘Oh yeah, I’ll come to that party.’”
Falcone observes, “Gary brought a lot of fun to the character and punch to his storyline. Earl is a guy who is a good time and trouble all at once.”
Cole calls Earl “an alcohol enthusiast. Some people may say he has a problem; he would say it’s a hobby.”
Pearl is also an avid “enthusiast,” so she and Earl hit it off immediately, which is a problem for his son, Bobby, played by Mark Duplass.
Like Tammy, who has her hands full with Pearl, Bobby has the thankless—and impossible—task of keeping Earl in line. Duplass offers, “Pearl and Earl have this electric connection of debauchery, so Tammy and Bobby are caught in the middle of that dynamic as it explodes, trying to get a handle on their elders. It’s a fun role reversal.”
The dynamic between Bobby and Tammy, however, is something of a hot mess. McCarthy explains, “Their eyes don’t meet across a crowded room; it’s more sloppy. She hits on him and makes an ass of herself. It’s the perfect imperfect springboard Ben and I wanted, so these subtle changes can transpire in Tammy as she and Bobby keep getting thrown together.”
Falcone adds, “Mark is a very expressive actor and infused Bobby with a simple honesty and sweet energy. He and Melissa played off each other so well. He brought nuances that helped build an organic progression and make you really root for the relationship between Tammy and Bobby.”
Things can only go downhill from the bar and Pearl enlists the help of her cousin Lenore to mitigate some of the collateral chaos that follows. The part was written for Kathy Bates.
Bates liked the strong, positive character, noting, “Lenore is very down-to-earth, a self-made woman. She has worked hard to achieve success both personally and professionally. But when she sees that Tammy has no aspirations for her life on either front, Lenore just wants to shake her a little so she’ll wake up.”
“I walked around New York City in my twenties with a copy of the play ‘Frankie and Johnny in the Claire de Lune,’ with a picture of her on the back, so I had to pinch myself in scenes with her,” McCarthy shares. “Kathy’s so amazing, she can send lightning bolts through you.”
“Melissa was inspiring, she’s funny as hell, and she’s emotionally full every single take,” says Bates. “And Ben created an easy environment. It was effortless, like those great friendships that are uncomplicated from the very beginning.”
Falcone states, “Kathy is all in. She didn’t even flinch at some of the crazy physical stuff, like lighting a Molotov cocktail or throwing a flaming tiki torch as a javelin. She is an exceptional talent.”
Sandra Oh joined the ensemble as Lenore’s partner Susanne. The two had previously worked together on “Six Feet Under,” though on opposite sides of the camera, with Bates directing Oh. Now, in front of the camera, their chemistry flourished.
Falcone says, “Kathy and Sandra are so great together. They just make you want to hang out at Lenore and Susanne’s house. A lot.”
“When they approached me to play opposite Kathy, I jumped at it,” says Oh. “I have great respect for her. I was excited about the opportunity to perform in scenes with her this time around because we already had such a strong connection.”
Bates agrees. “It’s always a treat working with Sandra. And from our first scene, it was like she had been my partner for years. I told her later she really gave us our on-screen relationship; her little details brought so much heart.”
“We were fortunate to have an incredible cast,” says Falcone. “Melissa and I love these characters. You could tell the cast did, too, and I think the audience will feel that love.”
Detour
Pearl
Where’s the dance floor and the bar?
Not in that order.
Filming took place primarily in and around Wilmington, North Carolina, which doubled for the Midwest look of Murphysboro, Illinois.
At Falcone’s request, director of photography Russ Alsobrook implemented cross-shooting throughout the film, with cameras simultaneously on each actor, a method Falcone had observed on previous films in which he had worked. “It helps people keep that reaction in the moment, because later it’s really hard to go back and remember what you said if you were improvising,” the director relates.
Falcone notes that although not everyone in the cast was used to improvisation, they all ultimately embraced the opportunity. “Melissa and I both come from a background of improv, so we know it’s a great tool.”
One memorable improvisation took place between Melissa and “Stuffy,” the deer Tammy hits with her car. Made at Creature Effects, the animatronic deer was controlled by two puppeteers who could make its eyes, ears and mouth move. The props department made a double for Stuffy which could be thrown at the car to simulate Tammy hitting it. In a completely unscripted and unexpected moment, Melissa suddenly started giving Stuffy mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
Falcone recalls, “It was so hot and she was down on that asphalt, and she started ‘saving’ Stuffy. I was having a hard time not laughing and ruining the takes.”
Sarandon agrees, “It was fabulous to improv scenes with Melissa. It may seem like it’s off the-cuff but she is very present; a consummate professional who never loses sight of what needs to be accomplished in the scene.”
She continues, “For me, Ben’s directing style also helped make it possible for us to go off script. He created a solid structure, and then within that structure, there was freedom, which enabled a looseness and fluidity to the performance.”
Bates also found the improvisation environment stimulating, admitting, “I told Ben to make me part of his rep company. He gave us room, and because it always comes from such a natural, real place, you really want to try things.”
Another key decision was the use of practical locations to achieve a grounded look. Falcone turned to production designer Jefferson Sage, who had previously worked with McCarthy on “The Heat” and “Bridesmaids,” to transform the locations into Tammy and Pearl’s world.
Sage started with designing Topper Jack’s burger chain, the fictional franchise that recurs throughout the film. Inspired by a now-defunct chain McCarthy remembers growing up, Sage says, “The look and corporate identity of this restaurant chain needed to feel local and dated, like they were overdue for an image re-set, but hadn’t done it yet. We used the signature yellow and red color scheme to identify with a jarring 1970s palette, emphasizing the tiredness of the place, which also reflects the dead-end nature of Tammy’s job.”
The first Topper Jack’s is the scene of an argument between McCarthy and her boss that involves throwing both insults and food. Falcone plays the boss from hell. Of her nightmare on-screen boss, McCarthy says, “We all know that guy, we’ve all worked for that guy. I have been fired by that guy for sure.” She adds, “It was fun throwing food at Ben.”
As Topper Jack’s keeps popping up on the road, they become the site of some bad decisions, which only compound Tammy’s troubles.
While Topper Jack’s color scheme pushed the envelope, Tammy’s home was specifically designed to avoid kitsch and evoke a contained feeling. “Her world needed to feel kind of small,” explains Sage. “It’s cluttered, there’s no cohesive sense of design. We crowded enough in to make it feel cramped and a bit oppressive, using a dour, dark, dingy color palette.”
Two houses down is Tammy’s mother’s house. Sage says, “Deb’s reflects a successful, happy relationship. The flowerbeds are tended, it’s comfortable inside. There is happiness here.” Fortunately, Sage found one neighborhood with the houses located right near each other on the same street, which enabled Falcone to establish Tammy’s problems quickly, and shoot her ensuing escape in a continuous sequence.
Falcone designed Tammy’s post-escape car scenes “to force the intimacy between Pearl and Tammy, whether they welcome it or not.”
“It was hot and there was weather and dust and a lot of hours in the car, but those were actually some of my favorite scenes,” says Sarandon.
McCarthy also enjoyed them. In addition to trading barbs with Sarandon’s character, she got to do the real driving. Stunt coordinator Peter King details, “Melissa was fearless. She has enormous endurance and a sense of natural timing, but she is also one of the best drivers I’ve ever worked with. She can hit a difficult mark, nailing it even without practice. She outdrove my stunt drivers more than once, which was fun to watch.”
“It was pretty cool,” McCarthy smiles. “Look out NASCAR.”
Their first real stop, The Blue Post, is a location that will change the course of Pearl and Tammy’s road trip. For the bar sequence, Sage added a stage and lots of neon to an existing converted downtown warehouse. The last touch for the bar was the real bluegrass band Possum Creek. Executive Producer Rob Cowan took Falcone and McCarthy to hear them at the local bar Satellite on a Sunday night and they hired the band on the spot, including using original music by the band in the scene.
Filmmakers also hired local outer banks artisans and brothers Skip and Bob Raymo,whose forte is sculpting by chainsaw, to create a piece for a seminal scene at Snow’s Cut Park, located on the inland waterway. Falcone and McCarthy wanted an iconic American theme, which the artists delivered in the form of a very unique American eagle.
Several pit stops on Tammy and Pearl’s trek also involve lakes, which posed a challenge to filmmakers as there are none in Wilmington.
To accomplish the Sea Doo sequence—where Tammy attempts to ride the power water craft but only digs herself and Pearl into more trouble—Sage built a wharf with a dock and huts where vendors are selling wares.
Once again, McCarthy wanted to execute as much of the stunts as possible. The stunt coordinator recalls how fast McCarthy picked it up. “It’s 99 percent Melissa on that Sea Doo ‘coming in hot,’” King states.
Falcone scheduled plenty of time for practice. “I figure we’d get Melissa oriented to the Sea Doo, and take it slow, but she just got on and immediately took it up to almost 50. She did a hard turn and stopped…but the Sea Doo just kept going without her. There was no stopping her from getting back on and doing it again. She’s a trouper.”
As Tammy’s troubles increase in size after her Sea Doo debacle, so does the getaway vehicle. Pearl calls her cousin Lenore, who shows up with an enormous RV so they can ditch Pearl’s Buick sedan in a big way and lay low at Lenore’s house on the lake.
On the inland waterway outside of Wilmington, filmmakers found a large Nantucket-style residence surrounded by giant oak trees with a private dock to use as Lenore’s house. A generous wraparound deck gave way to a sizeable pool area. The landscaping was so inviting Falcone moved scenes from indoors to outdoors on the property and had Sage and his team create a dance floor over an entire section of the pool.
They redressed the interior of the house, for a mountain lodge motif. Some of the key pieces of furniture were custom upholstered using antique quilts and vintage silk coverlets from the Depression era. The art was all locally sourced.
Although Pearl and Tammy are hoping to hide out at Lenore’s during her annual Fourth of July party, there are more fireworks than expected.
There were some unexpected behind-the-scenes surprises as well. During an important shot that not only involved most of the main cast and lots of extras, but pyrotechnics, too, a storm came in. Falcone relates, “We were on a camera barge and suddenly lightning struck and the barge lost power. We just started to drift off out into this inlet with the storm picking up. That’s when my director of photography, Russ, looked at me and said, ‘It’s been great knowing you.’”
All Tricked Out
Tammy
Did you put on man-perfume for me?
One four-legged cast member in attendance was Sarandon’s dog Penny, who portrays Lenore’s dog. Along with a fresh haircut, Penny had on “a beautiful Fourth of July outfit,” says Sarandon, who dressed her herself.
Costume designer Wendy Chuck was responsible for dressing everyone else. “Pearl represented a challenge,” she notes. “We had to turn beautiful Susan into a believable grandma of a certain age. The wig really helped as did finding pastel colors in a loose fit.”
In addition, Sarandon donned prosthetic ankles for the role and put peppercorns in her shoes so she could walk gingerly, as if her feet hurt.
Chuck dressed both Cole and Duplass in boots, jeans, and fitted shirts with a slight western flavor to reflect hardworking men of the land.
“But it all started with Tammy’s fast food uniform,” Chuck offers. “The rust color was inspired by old rusting cars and miles of cattle in the Midwest. With Melissa, you get to paint with a brighter brush stroke, right down to the Crocs Tammy wears for most of the film.” Chuck adds that Tammy’s remaining clothes, including a denim jacket over an animal print nylon top with faux leather fringing, “speak of sartorial desperation. She doesn’t really know how to put things together, doesn’t have money or taste and never gets it right.”
As Tammy discovers herself, a makeover ensues. “The transition is a subtle arc to wear more appropriate clothes,” says Chuck.
A realistic makeover was important to McCarthy. She comments, “Women are usually tamed down and brushed out and glossed up over a montage. But it’s not about your hair. It’s not about becoming a whole different person; it’s about becoming a better version of your true self. People don’t have to turn into secret agents or rocket scientists to be cool or have a really happy life. Learning to deal with your own b-s and to be responsible is the real makeover.”
In closing, Falcone says, “Everybody wants a do-over or a makeover at some point in their life. Everybody gets lost now and then. But there’s no map, you just have to wing it. Tammy and Pearl do just that and the ride is crazy and full of laughs. We hope the audience will have a good time on the ride too.”
# # #
CAST
Melissa McCarthy (Tammy / Writer / Producer) received an Oscar® nomination for her role as Megan, the confident sister of the groom, in Paul Feig’s worldwide box office comedy success “Bridesmaids,” produced by Judd Apatow. The performance garnered BAFTA, Critics Choice and Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Award® nominations as well and earned the 2012 MTV Movie Award for Best Comedic Performance. McCarthy has also received accolades for her television work, including an Emmy for her starring role on the hit CBS comedy “Mike & Molly” and two Emmy nominations for her memorable guest host turns on “Saturday Night Live.”
Last year, McCarthy starred in “The Heat,” opposite Sandra Bullock for director Paul Feig and in the comedy hit “Identity Thief,” alongside Jason Bateman. She previously collaborated with Apatow, appearing in his comedy “This is 40.” She is currently filming Feig’s “Spy,” in theaters on May 22, 2015.
This October, she will be seen in the comedy “St. Vincent,” starring alongside Bill Murray and Naomi Watts. McCarthy also lends her voice to the character of Watts in the animated comedy” B.O.O.: Bureau of Otherworldly Operations,” set for release June 5, 2015.
Among her other credits are Todd Phillip’s “The Hangover Part III,” “The Life of David Gale,” “White Oleander,” “The Back-Up Plan,” “Life As We Know It,” and “The Nines,” written and directed by John August.
She also starred in August’s short film “God” as a young woman having a short-lived spat with the Almighty, and Doug Liman’s “Go,” which August wrote as well. Her additional indie films include “Pretty Ugly People,” “Just Add Water,” and “Pumpkin.”
McCarthy first made her mark performing stand up in New York. While training at The Actors Studio and starring in a variety of stage productions throughout the city, McCarthy was also doing comedy shows at The Improv and Stand Up New York.
On the west coast, McCarthy spent nine years as a main-stage member of the world-renowned improv and sketch troupe The Groundlings. Transitioning to television, she appeared in several series, including “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” landing the breakout role of Sookie St. James, the clumsy culinary genius in the hit “Gilmore Girls.” She also had a recurring role as Dena in “Samantha Who?”
Aside from developing numerous film and television projects, McCarthy is designing her first clothing line.
SUSAN SARANDON (Pearl) brings her own brand of fierce intelligence to every role she plays, from her acclaimed, fearless portrayal in “Bull Durham” to her Oscar®-nominated performances in “Atlantic City,” “Thelma & Louise,” “Lorenzo’s Oil” and “The Client,” to her Academy Award®-winning and Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Award®-winning work in “Dead Man Walking.”
Sarandon has also been honored for her distinguished work in television. Among her numerous accolades, she recently received an Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries for her role in the HBO film “Bernard and Doris,” as well as Golden Globe and SAG® Award nominations in the same category. In 2010, Sarandon received Emmy and SAG® nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actress for her role opposite Al Pacino in HBO’s “You Don’t Know Jack,” directed by Barry Levinson. Her other HBO miniseries include “Mussolini: The Decline and Fall of Il Duce,” opposite Bob Hoskins and Anthony Hopkins, and James Lapine’s “Earthly Possessions,” based on the Anne Tyler novel.
Her more recent performances include the films “The Big Wedding,”“Snitch,” “ Robert Redford’s “The Company You Keep,” “Arbitrage,” “That’s My Boy,” and “Robot & Frank.”
Among Sarandon’s additional feature credits are the Wachowskis’ “Cloud Atlas” and “Speed Racer”, “Jeff, Who Lives at Home,” “Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps,” for director Oliver Stone, Peter Jackson’s “The Lovely Bones,” “Enchanted,” “Mr. Woodcock,” Paul Haggis’ “In the Valley of Elah,” “Romance and Cigarettes,” Cameron Crowe’s “Elizabethtown,” “Alfie,” “Shall We Dance?,” “Moonlight Mile,” “The Banger Sisters,” “Igby Goes Down,” “Cradle Will Rock,” “Step Mom,” “Twilight,” “Safe Passage,” “Little Women,” “Bob Roberts,” “Light Sleeper,” “White Palace,” “A Dry White Season,” “The January Man,” “Sweet Hearts Dance,” “The Witches of Eastwick,” “Compromising Positions,” “The Buddy System,” “The Hunger” and “King of the Gypsies.”
Sarandon made her acting debut in the movie “Joe,” which she followed with a continuing role in the TV daytime drama “A World Apart.” Her early film credits include “The Great Waldo Pepper,” “Lovin’ Molly,” Billy Wilder’s “The Front Page,” the 1975 cult classic “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” and Louis Malle’s controversial “Pretty Baby.”
In addition to her many on-screen credits, she lent her vocal talents to the animated features “Rugrats in Paris,” “James and the Giant Peach,” and “Cats & Dogs,” and has provided the narration for many documentaries, including Laleh Khadivi’s “900 Women,” about female prison inmates.
Her other television credits include starring in “Ice Bound” as Dr. Jerri Nielson, based on Nielson’s real life survival story; as Princess Wensicia Corrino in the Sci Fi Channel miniseries “Children of Dune”; “The Exonerated,” directed by Bob Balaban; and “Women of Valor.” She has also made guest appearances on “The Big C,” “30 Rock,” the highly popular “Mother Lover” video on “Saturday Night Live,” and, most recently, two episodes of “Mike & Molly,” including the one that marked Melissa McCarthy’s directorial debut.
Allison Janney (Deb) has taken her place among a select group of actors who combine a leading lady’s profile with a character actor’s art of performance. She currently co-stars, with Anna Faris, in the new CBS/Chuck Lorre series “Mom.” She also appears in a multi-episode arc on the Showtime drama “Masters of Sex.”
In addition, Janney has been busy with a number of films, including the premiere of Lynn Shelton’s “Touchy Feely” at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, Christian Camargo’s “Days and Nights,” with William Hurt and Jean Reno; “The Way, Way Back” with Steve Carell and Toni Collette; “Trust Me” for director/actor Clark Gregg; and Jason Bateman’s comedy “Bad Words.” She lent her voice to the animated film “Mr. Peabody & Sherman” and earlier appeared in “The Oranges” with Catherine Keener, “Liberal Arts” with Josh Radnor and “Struck By Lightning,” with Chris Colfer.
Previously she co-starred in the Best Picture Oscar® nominee “The Help,” based on the best-selling novel of the same name. For their extraordinary performances, the cast won Ensemble awards from the Screen Actors Guild®, National Board of Review and the Broadcast Film Critics.
Janney has delighted audiences with outstanding performances in the Oscar®-winning ensemble hit “Juno” and in the movie version of the Tony Award winning play “Hairspray.” For her role in Todd Solondz’s film “Life During Wartime” she received a Spirit Awards nomination for Best Supporting Actress. She also appeared in Sam Mendes’ “Away We Go,” the comedy “Strangers with Candy,” and was heard as the voice of Gladys in the animated film “Over the Hedge” as well as Peach in “Finding Nemo.”
Janney received another Spirit Award nomination for her work in the independent feature “Our Very Own,” and starred opposite Meryl Streep in “The Hours,” which received a SAG Award® nomination for Outstanding Ensemble Cast in a Motion Picture. Other feature credits include the Academy Award® winning film “American Beauty,” for which she won a SAG Award® for Outstanding Ensemble Cast in a Motion Picture, as well as “Nurse Betty,” “How to Deal,” “Drop Dead Gorgeous,” “10 Things I Hate About You,” “Primary Colors,” “The Ice Storm,” “Six Days Seven Nights,” “The Object of My Affection,” and “Big Night.”
Throughout her career Janney has made a handful of memorable guest-star appearances on television, but she is renowned for her starring role in the acclaimed NBC series “The West Wing,” where she won a remarkable four Emmy Awards and four SAG Awards® for her portrayal of White House Press Secretary C.J. Cregg.
While a freshman studying acting at Kenyon College in Ohio, Janney auditioned for Paul Newman and got the part. Soon after, Newman and his wife Joanne Woodward suggested she study at the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York. Janney followed their advice and went on to make her Broadway debut in Noel Coward’s “Present Laughter” for which she earned the Outer Critics Circle Award and Clarence Derwent Award.
Janney also appeared in Arthur Miller’s “A View from the Bridge,” receiving her first Tony Award nomination and winning the Outer Critics Circle Award. She was last seen on Broadway in the musical “9 to 5,” for which she earned a Tony nomination and won the Drama Desk Award.
Gary Cole (Earl) is best known for his film roles in classic cult comedies such as “Office Space,” “Pineapple Express,” “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby” and “Dodgeball.”
His additional film credits include: “American Pastime,” “Breach,” “The Ring 2,” “Crazy in Love,” “Win a Date With Tad Hamilton!,” “I Spy,” “One Hour Photo,” “The Gift,” “A Simple Plan,” “Kiss the Sky,” “The Brady Bunch Movie” and Wolfgang Petersen’s “In the Line of Fire,” starring Clint Eastwood.
On television, he is currently a regular on the HBO hit “VEEP.” His additional credits include “The Good Wife,” “True Blood,” “Entourage,” “Desperate Housewives,” “The West Wing,” “Suits,” “Midnight Caller” and “American Gothic.”
Cole is a veteran of both the screen and the stage. As an ensemble member of Steppenwolf Theater Company, Cole’s theater credits include “August: Osage County,” “Collected Works of Billy the Kid,” “Speed the Plow,” “American Buffalo,” “Ryovers” and “Balm in Gilead.” He recently starred in the Sam Shepard play “Heartless,” which made its world premiere at the Pershing Square Signature Center in 2012.
Mark Duplass (Bobby) currently writes, directs and stars in the HBO series “Togetherness,” which he created with his brother, Jay Duplass. He is also well-known for his recurring roles in the Fox comedy “The Mindy Project” and the hit FX series “The League.”
He will next be seen in the feature films “Lazarus,” opposite Olivia Wilde, and Peter Cornwell’s “Mercy.”
His recent feature acting credits include Kathryn Bigelow’s “Zero Dark Thirty”; “The One I Love,” opposite Elisabeth Moss, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival this year and is in theatres in August; “Safety Not Guaranteed,” alongside Aubrey Plaza and Jake Johnson, which was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival; Lynn Shelton’s “Humpday”; and Shelton’s “Your Sister’s Sister,” alongside Emily Blunt and Rosemarie DeWitt, which premiered at the 2011 Toronto International Film Fest.
Duplass has also written and directed several award-winning films with his brother, including the 2005 Sundance breakout hit “The Puffy Chair”; “Baghead,” at Sundance 2008; “Cyrus,” starring John C. Reilly, Jonah Hill and Marisa Tomei; “Jeff Who Lives At Home,” starring Jason Segal, Ed Helms, Susan Sarandon, and Judy Greer; and the 2012 comedy “The Do-Deca Pentathlon.”
Duplass’ executive producing credits include “The Freebie,” “Safety Not Guaranteed,” “Your Sister’s Sister,” “The Skeleton Twins,” and the upcoming “Manson Family “Vacation” and “Brother’s Keeper.”
SANDRA OH (Susanne) is an award winning screen and stage actress. For her decade-long run as Dr. Cristina Yang on the hit ABC series “Grey’s Anatomy,” she received a Golden Globe and Screen Actor’s Guild (SAG) Award® as well as two Emmy Award nominations.
Previously, Oh shared a SAG Award® with the cast of the enormously successful feature film “Sideways,” in which she starred. She won her first Genie Award for her leading role in “Double Happiness,” a performance that brought her much acclaim and secured her place as one of Canada’s rising young film stars, and a second for Best Actress in 1999 for her performance in “Last Night.” Her performance in the CBC telefilm “The Diary of Evelyn Lau” earned a Gemini nomination for Best Actress and the 1994 Cannes FIPA d’Or for Best Actress. For another memorable role as sassy assistant Rita Wu, which Oh played for six seasons on the HBO comedy series “Arliss,” she won a CableACE Award for Best Actress in a Comedy.
Never straying far from her theatre roots, Oh has starred in the world premieres of Jessica Hagedorn’s “Dogeaters” at the La Jolla Playhouse and Diana Son’s “Stop Kiss” at Joseph Papp’s Public Theatre in New York, a role for which she received a Theatre World award. She previously completed a sold-out run of the world premiere of “Satellites” at New York’s Public Theater for playwright Diana Son and also performed the “The Vagina Monologues” in New York. In addition, Oh was seen in the British production of “Thorne: Scaredy Cat.” She currently stars in “Death and the Maiden” at the Victory Gardens Theater in Chicago.
Among Oh’s other film credits are “Defendor,” “Blindness,” “The Night Listener,” “For Your Consideration,” “Three Needles,” “Long Life, Happiness and Prosperity,” “Under the Tuscan Sun,” “Sorry Haters,” “Ramona and Beezus,” “Rick,” “Bean,” “Guinevere,” “The Red Violin,” “Waking the Dead,” “The Princess Diaries,” and “Pay or Play.” She also starred in Michael Radford’s improvised “Dancing at the Blue Iguana.”
Her additional television credits include HBO’s “Six Feet Under” and Showtime’s “Further Tales of the City.”
Born and raised in Ottawa, Canada, Oh started ballet lessons at the age of four and appeared in her first play, “The Canada Goose” at the age of ten. She started working professionally at age sixteen in television, theatre and commercials, studying at the prestigious National Theatre School of Canada.
DAN AYKROYD (Don) has enjoyed a more-than-30-year career in entertainment and was honored with an Academy Award® nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Boolie Werthan in the Best Picture winner “Driving Miss Daisy.” The Ottowa, Ontario native is well known to film audiences for his work in more than 60 features, including Ivan Reitman’s “Ghostbusters” and “Ghostbusters II,” both of which Aykroyd co-wrote; the heartwarming “My Girl”; the comedy hit “Trading Places”; and Sir Richard Attenborough’s “Chaplin.” Altogether, Aykroyd’s films have grossed close to $1 billion worldwide.
Among his most recent film credits, Aykroyd starred in “The Campaign,” and lent his voice to the animated family musical “Dorothy of Oz.” He previously voiced the irrepressible classic cartoon character Yogi Bear in the 2010 film “Yogi Bear.” In television, he recently had a starring role in “Behind the Candelabra,” Steven Soderbergh’s biographical drama of Liberace for HBO.
Aykroyd first came to fame as one of the original Not Ready for Primetime Players on “Saturday Night Live.” While on the show, he won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy-Variety or Music Series, and created many of its most popular and enduring characters, including the Coneheads’ patriarch, Beldar, and Elwood Blues who, together with John Belushi’s Jake Blues, formed The Blues Brothers. Aykroyd and Belushi received a Grammy Award nomination for Best New Artist of 1979 for their triple platinum-selling album “Briefcase Full of Blues.” In his persona as Elwood Blues, Aykroyd has performed on a total of seven CDs, with sales totaling approximately five million units.
He and Belushi later brought The Blues Brothers to the big screen in the hit film of the same name, co-written by Aykroyd. He later recruited James Belushi to perform as Jake’s blood brother Zee, and the two have since performed as Elwood and Zee Blues for live audiences around the U.S. Aykroyd also wrote and starred in the film sequel, “Blues Brothers 2000,” directed by John Landis.
Aykroyd co-wrote and starred in the comedies “Spies Like Us,” “Dragnet,” and “Nothing But Trouble,” as well as “Coneheads,” based on his popular “SNL” character. His many other feature film credits include “Pearl Harbor,” “Twilight Zone: The Movie,” Steven Spielberg’s “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom,” “My Stepmother Is an Alien,” “Sneakers,” “My Girl 2,” “Exit to Eden,” “Tommy Boy,” “Grosse Pointe Blank,” “The House of Mirth,” the computer-animated “Antz” and Ivan Reitman’s “Evolution.”
In addition to his work in film and television, Aykroyd is a busy entrepreneur whose many business endeavors include helping to bring the Hard Rock Café restaurants to the United States and later co-founding The House of Blues Entertainment, Inc., opening House of Blues concert hall/restaurant/retail store venues across the country. As Elwood Blues, Aykroyd hosts the more than 10-year-running House of Blues Radio Hour, which is syndicated on 180 radio stations through the United Stations Radio Networks. Aykroyd and James Belushi also work as co-emcees, vocalists and dancers in their “Have Love Will Travel Revue,” in service of classic American songs.
Aykroyd also has several interests in the field of wine and spirits, including Patron Spirits, which he distributes throughout Canada; a partnership with Toronto-based Diamond Estates Wine and Spirits Ltd, resulting in the launch of such wines as the Dan Aykroyd Discovery Series and the Dan Aykroyd Signature Reserve VQA Vidal Ice Wine, the former being named Canadian Wine of the Year; and Crystal Head Vodka, produced in Newfoundland. In June 2007, Diamond Estates announced it would build The Dan Aykroyd Winery in the heart of Canada’s wine region in Niagara. The $12 million, 45,000-square-foot winery features a multi-level hospitality building and pays tribute to the region’s terrain and to Aykroyd’s work in film and television by showcasing some of his favorite memorabilia throughout the building.
Invested with the Order of Canada in 1999, Aykroyd received a Vice-Regal decoration from the Governor General as a prominent Canadian who “desires to make a better country.” He also served as a sworn Captain in the Reserve of the Department of Police in the City of Harahan, Louisiana, receiving a citation for his work in youth anti-crime education.
KATHY BATES
been honored numerous times for her work on stage, screen and television. She won an Academy Award® and a Golden Globe for her portrayal of obsessed fan Annie Wilkes in Rob Reiner’s 1990 hit “Misery,” based on Stephen King’s novel. In 1999, she received Oscar®, Golden Globe and BAFTA nominations and won a Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Award® and a Critics Choice Award for her performance in Mike Nichols’ “Primary Colors.” Bates more recently earned her third Oscar® nomination for her role in Alexander Payne’s “About Schmidt,” for which she also garnered Golden Globe and SAG Award® nominations and won a National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actress. Her film work has also been recognized with Golden Globe and BAFTA Award nominations for Jon Avnet’s “Fried Green Tomatoes,” and she also shared in a SAG Award® nomination with the ensemble cast of James Cameron’s blockbuster “Titanic.”
Bates was more recently seen in Woody Allen’s “Midnight In Paris”; Garry Marshall’s “Valentine’s Day”; the Oscar®-nominated “The Blind Side”; Stephen Frears’ “Cheri;” Sam Mendes’ “Revolutionary Road,” the sci-fi remake “The Day the Earth Stood Still,” and the independent drama “Personal Effects.” Her long list of film credits also includes “P.S. I Love You,” “Fred Claus,” “Failure to Launch,” “Little Black Book,” “Dragonfly,” “American Outlaws,” “The Waterboy,” “The War at Home,” “Dolores Claiborne,” “A Home of Our Own,” “Prelude to a Kiss,” “Shadows and Fog,” “At Play in the Fields of the Lord,” “Dick Tracy,” “Men Don’t Leave,” “Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean,” “Straight Time” and “Taking Off.” Bates lent her voice to Jerry Seinfeld’s animated comedy “Bee Movie,” as well as “Charlotte’s Web” and “The Golden Compass.”
On the small screen, she currently is starring in the award-winning series “American Horror Story.” She also starred in the title role of Harriet “Harry” Korn in the NBC drama series “Harry’s Law,” for which she was nominated for two consecutive Emmy Awards. Bates also won an Emmy for her guest role as the ghost of Charlie Sheen’s character on “Two & A Half Men” in the 2012 season.
Previously, Bates appeared in the FX miniseries “Alice,” playing the Queen of Hearts, for which she earned an Emmy Award nomination for her performance. She won a Golden Globe and a SAG Award® and earned an Emmy Award nomination for the 1996 HBO film “The Late Shift.” Her television honors also include Emmy, Golden Globe and SAG Award® nominations for her performance in the musical “Annie”; another SAG Award® nomination for her role in the telefilm “My Sister’s Keeper”; and four additional Emmy Award nominations for her work on the projects “3rd Rock from the Sun,” “Six Feet Under,” “Warm Springs,” and “Ambulance Girl,” which she also directed.
Bates has also been honored for her work behind the camera as a director. She helmed the A&E telefilm “Dash and Lilly,” starring Sam Shepard and Judy Davis, which earned nine Emmy nominations, including one for Bates as Best Director. She also directed five episodes of the acclaimed HBO series “Six Feet Under,” earning her a Directors Guild of America nomination for the episode entitled “Twilight.” Her directing credits also include episodes of such series as “Oz,” “NYPD Blue” and “Homicide: Life on the Street.”
Bates first gained the attention of critics and audiences on the New York stage. She was nominated for a Tony Award for her portrayal of the suicidal daughter in the original Broadway production of Marsha Norman’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play “`night, Mother.” She has been honored with Obie Awards for her performance as Frankie in the original off-Broadway production of “Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune” as well as for her portrayal of Elsa Barlow in Athol Fugard’s “The Road to Mecca,” which Kathy also starred in when filmed.
Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Bates received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1970 from Southern Methodist University, which awarded her an honorary doctorate in 2002.
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