Liam Neeson Thriller ‘Thug’ Adds Ron Perlman, Yolonda Ross & Daniel Diemer
Liam Neeson Thriller ‘Thug’ Adds Ron Perlman, Yolonda Ross & Daniel Diemer:
EXCLUSIVE: Ron Perlman (Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio), Yolonda Ross (The Chi) and Daniel Diemer (The Midnight Club) will star opposite Liam Neeson in the mob thriller Thug, reteaming the Oscar nominee with Cold Pursuit director Hans Petter Moland.
The film from Sculptor Media and Electromagnetic Production, which is currently shooting in Boston, revolves around an aging Boston gangster (Neeson) who attempts to reconnect with his children and rectify the mistakes in his past, though the criminal underworld won’t loosen its grip willingly.
Tony Gayton (Hell on Wheels) wrote the screenplay. Sculptor Media’s Warren Goz and Eric Gold are producing alongside Roger Birnbaum (Rush Hour franchise) and Michael Besman (About Schmidt) for Electromagnetic Productions, as well as Force Majeure (Copshop). Mark Kimsey is exec producing along with James Masciello, Matt Sidari and Mitchell Zhang of Raven, which has a slate financing and production partnership with Sculptor Media and is financing Thug.
Mossbank, headed by Michael Rothstein and Sam Hall, is handling international sales and will engage with buyers at the upcoming America Film Market, taking place in Santa Monica from November 1-6. Rothstein and Hall are also executive producing the film. CAA Media Finance arranged the financing and is handling domestic sales.
Perlman is a Golden Globe winner and two-time Emmy nominee whose recent credits include Adam McKay’s end-of-the-world comedy Don’t Look Up for Netflix and Guillermo del Toro’s Nightmare Alley for Searchlight Pictures. The actor voices the fascist bureaucrat Podesta in Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, which will debut in select theaters via Netflix in November, before moving to the streamer on December 9. Other upcoming projects include Rian Johnson’s Peacock’s series Poker Face and Paramount’s Transformers: Rise of the Beasts.
Ross currently stars on Showtime’s series American Gigolo and The Chi, having previously appeared on shows like How to Get Away with Murder, The Get Down and Treme. Notable past film credits on the part of the actress include the Jeffrey Wright-led O.G. for HBO, Ana Lily Amirpour’s The Bad Batch, Ira Sachs’ Little Men, Reed Morano’s Meadowland, Todd Haynes’ I’m Not There and Denzel Washington’s Antwone Fisher.
Diemer can currently be seen on Mike Flanagan’s latest Netflix horror series The Midnight Club, co-created by Leah Fong. Past credits include guest spots on Black Summer and The Man in the High Castle and a recurring role on Facebook Watch’s Sacred Lies, along with parts in the Indies Brazen and The Half of It. Other upcoming projects for the actor include the action pic Supercell starring Alec Baldwin, the late Anne Heche and Skeet Ulrich, and the drama Little Brother with J.K. Simmons.
Perlman is represented by Gersh and Link Entertainment; Ross by WE Group Talent and Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz; and Diemer by Gersh, Atlas Artists, and Nuance Talent Management in Vancouver.
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