Summit Entertainment Presents
In association with OddLot Entertainment
A Montecito Picture Company / OddLot Entertainment Production
An Ivan Reitman Film
Directed by Ivan Reitman
Screenplay by Rajiv Joseph & Scott Rothman
Produced by Ivan Reitman, p.g.a., Ali Bell, p.g.a., Joe Medjuck, p.g.a.
Executive Producers Tom Pollock, Michael Beugg, Gigi Pritzker, Bill Lischak, Michael Nathanson
Starring Kevin Costner, Jennifer Garner, Denis Leary, Frank Langella, Sam Elliott, Sean Combs, Terry
Crews, with Ellen Burstyn and Chadwick Boseman
Run Time: 109 Minutes
Rated PG-13 for brief strong language and sexual references
In Theaters April 11, 2014
National Publicity
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In Draft Day, on the day of the NFL Draft, general manager Sonny Weaver Jr. (Kevin Costner) has
the opportunity to rebuild his team when he trades for the number one pick. He must quickly decide
what he's willing to sacrifice in pursuit of perfection as the lines between his personal and professional
life become blurred on a life-changing day for a few hundred young men with dreams of playing in the
NFL.
Draft Day stars Kevin Costner, Jennifer Garner, Denis Leary and Ellen Burstyn; is directed and
produced by Ivan Reitman, from a script by Rajiv Joseph & Scott Rothman. The film also features Frank
Langella, Sean Combs, Terry Crews, Chadwick Boseman, Rosanna Arquette, W. Earl Brown, Kevin Dunn,
Arian Foster, Brad William Henke, Chi McBride, Griffin Newman, Josh Pence, David Ramsey, Patrick St.
Esprit, Timothy Simons, Tom Welling, and Wade Williams, .
NFL players now on NFL Network Demario Davis, James Brewer, Ramses Barden, Zoltan Mesko,
and Stephen Hill; as well as NFL Network and ESPN on-air talent Rich Eisen, Mike Mayock, Deion
Sanders, Chris Berman, Mel Kiper and Jon Grudenalso appear in the film.
A Summit Entertainment release, OddLot Entertainment co-financed the film. Producing the
film with Reitman are Ali Bell and Joe Medjuck via the Montecito Picture Company banner. Montecito’s
Tom Pollock and Michael Beugg executive produce, alongside OddLot’s Gigi Pritzker, Bill Lischak, and
Michael Nathanson.
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ORIGIN OF THE PROJECT
If you don’t think you’re a winner, you don’t belong here.
—Vince Lombardi
If the motion picture industry were a parallel version of the National Football League, Ivan
Reitman would fill the roles of both Coach and General Manager, and he would be termed one of the
‘winningest’ directors in the industry. With his keen eye for cinematic potential, Reitman knew what he
had when the script for Draft Day crossed his desk at The Montecito Picture Company, the film and
television production entity he heads with partner Tom Pollock.
Director Ivan Reitman comments, “It was never my intention to make a great football movie. It
was not a dream of mine, even though I'm a big football fan. I just happened to get this script, and I
actually remember reading it in the middle of the night. I fell in love with it and couldn't stop reading it.
I read it in less than an hour. It's a page-turner. You get totally caught up, the way I did there in the
middle of the night. Kevin Costner’s character gets himself into a real bind, where he's put his own
career and his own team’s future in real jeopardy. Watching him unwind that is almost a mystery story,
and we discover it as he figures things out.”
Producer Joe Medjuck concurs and continues, “We just found it was such a great script and it
was not really all about football. It’s about someone in a crisis situation dealing with his personal life
and his professional life, and it all takes place on possibly the most important day in his life. We said,
‘We all like football and we really like this script—let’s get it and make this movie.’”
“It really is the best of everything,” picks up Montecito’s President of Production/Development
and film producer Ali Bell, “because it has a little bit of comedy at the center of it. But what really
resonated was this great idea of the American dream in this movie: you fight your way through life; you
stand by your convictions; you try your best to do what’s right. What’s really nice about Draft Day is
that you have a bunch of people who are doing the right things.”
The script was the first screenplay and the first partnering project for playwright Rajiv Joseph
and screenwriter Scott Rothman. Joseph recounts, “I’m from Cleveland. I grew up a Browns fan. I have
always been obsessed with them and with the sport of football, and I’ve always been looking for the
stories that can be told there. Scott and I watch football all the time. This friend of mine—a girl who’s
not even a football fan—commented to me one night that she really enjoys watching the televised NFL
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draft. I asked, ‘Why would you like the draft if you don’t like football?’ She said, ‘There’s a ticking clock,
and there are high stakes and there are all of these interesting people.’ So I thought, ‘That sounds like a
good movie,’ so Scott and I set out to write that.”
Rothman clicked on the idea as strongly as Joseph and says, “Rajiv called me and asked me,
‘What do you think about writing a script about the NFL draft?’ It was a no-brainer, even though we had
never written together before. We figured we were both huge football fans and that we could punch it
out—that it was going to happen very quickly.”
At the time, Joseph’s latest play—which would go on to become a finalist for the 2010 Pulitzer
Prize—was heading to Broadway with Robin Williams. Both writers were eager to jump into the
screenplay that would later coalesce into Draft Day, but career opportunities delayed the start…for
approximately eight months. What seemed unfortunate at the time, in fact, became fortuitous, as
during the delay, both upped their televised football quotient, and they found at least some
opportunities to bounce story ideas around over the odd adult beverage.
Once both their schedules cleared enough to collaborate on the screenplay, Rothman ventured
from his Westchester home and deposited himself in the living room of Joseph’s Brooklyn apartment,
“on an extended sleepover party,” Rothman quips.
There, within the early part of January 2011, “With me in the kitchen and Scott in the living
room, we would bang out about 15 pages at a time, then we’d trade,” laughs Joseph. “We did that for
about two weeks, until we had our screenplay.”
A couple of months and re-writes later, Draft Day was circulating around Hollywood. With Rajiv
already in Los Angeles and Scott on an incoming flight from New York, news arrived that would seriously
impact their career trajectories.
Rothman attests, “I got off the flight from New York and heard that Ivan Reitman had read the
script and really liked it and wanted to talk to us. Could we go talk to Ivan Reitman? Answer being, of
course, we can and will go talk to Ivan Reitman, one of our childhood heroes, about the script.”
After the scribes left the meeting, both realized that, “This was not how it normally worked in
the entertainment industry. We both truly appreciate what a rare and unique opportunity has been
afforded us,” confesses Joseph.
Rothman recalls, “I was on cloud nine when we left. Rajiv was driving the car and, of course,
there was hellacious Los Angeles traffic, which was making him crazy. I kept wanting to grab and shake
him and scream, ‘Do you realize what just happened!?!’ But he was totally immersed in the traffic—his
freak-out came once we finished the drive.”
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Producer Joe Medjuck summarizes, “Draft Day is about the general manager of an NFL team on
the day of the NFL Draft—as well as having to deal with his professional responsibilities, he has to deal
with his mother, his girlfriend, his ex-wife and his life…it’s a very full day.”
In addition to the compelling scenario, what struck producer Ali Bell was the ring of the
dialogue: “There’s no fear—all of the characters in this movie are completely fearless. A lot of times
when you read screenplays, they can feel a little watered down, whitewashed, but real life is messy and
chaotic and you often end up hurting the people you love the most. That’s one of the things that’s so
beautiful and makes Scott and Rajiv’s dialogue so rich.”
Producer Medjuck, who’s been working with Reitman since emigrating from Canada more than
three decades ago, observes, “Ivan has been making films for more than 30 years. I met him when he
was a college student, and he was making films then. He’s also developed a great passion for football,
and has quite an extensive knowledge on the subject. While we weren’t necessarily looking for a film
about football, when this came along and it was such a good script, it was perfect for him.”
The interest of Reitman surprised Rothman almost as much as it did the director himself.
Rothman observes, “Ivan has really been a shaping force in American comedy. With Dave, there were
more dramatic elements mixed in. But really, there was nothing to forecast that Draft Day, which I
consider to be a drama with some comedic elements, would appeal to him or be something that he was
looking to do. At the meeting, once we heard his thoughts about the script, we realized that he got it.
He was looking to do more character-based material, which can be more challenging in a laugh-out-loud
comedic setting. He read our script at exactly the right time.”
For producer Bell, there was no such surprise, and she responds, “Ivan understands family, he
understands community and responsibility. Even though he’s known for doing comedy, he really gets
the heart and the emotionality. When you’re a director, you’re Sonny Weaver Jr. every day. You’re
going out there, you’re laying your heart on the line, and you’ve got a team of people behind you just
waiting for you to succeed or fail. One of Ivan’s greatest gifts is knowing that even when life is hard, it’s
also really funny, and he is able to find humor in those moments that feel really authentic and personal.”
For producer Medjuck, it was not only the characters and surrounding drama that was
compelling, it was the entire process of the NFL draft: “It’s like a multi-dimensional chess game,
because everything changes the minute someone is picked. Suddenly, the player’s not available, other
people are in consideration, there’s a clock and there are people watching you. To be quite honest, I
didn’t understand quite how popular watching the draft was before this.”
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For the uninitiated, the NFL draft is the three-day event (the film takes place in the first of the
three days), where eligible college players are selected by the 32 teams in the League to join their
organization. The order of draft is determined by the previous season, and draft positions are in reverse
order of how the team finished, for example the last place team chooses first, and on down the line.
Once assigned this position, the team can either draft a player in that position, or trade their
position (or future positions) to another team for another draft position, a player or players—or any
combination of those elements. In the case of General Manager Sonny Weaver Jr., his team begins with
the seventh draft pick…until Sonny begins his day of maneuvering and counter-moves, and he attains
the Number One position going into the draft that evening.
“I love the idea that the whole movie takes place in about twelve hours, starting very early in
the morning in Seattle and then working its way across the country,” adds Reitman. “As the clock ticks
down to the beginning of the draft, then through the three hours of the first round, and then finally in
the hour after that first round is over. It's all there.”
Ali Bell points out that the draft is the culmination, for most players, of a lifetime of playing
football—hundreds of NFL hopefuls waiting to hear their names announced during one of the seven
rounds of the draft. She is also quick to note that the draft is not the be-all and end-all for determining
the future of a player in the League.
She remarks, “It’s a huge thing for the fans, because their fingers are crossed that the coming
season will be better than the last. But, like anything in life, just because you were drafted first or
seventh, in the first round or last round, it doesn’t determine your future.”
Bell points to Arian Foster who, going into the 2009 NFL Draft, was predicted to be a pick in the
fifth or six round, but went undrafted. He then signed as a free agent with the Houston Texans. He
went on to be ranked number eight in the NFL’s 2013 Top 100 players, and he is regarded as one of the
best running backs in the League.
In what can only be called Hollywood magic, Foster was cast as player Ray Jennings, who ends
up drafted by the Cleveland Browns. Foster expresses, “I was happy for my character Ray Jennings. It
was a fun experience.”
Bell says, “Arian worked really hard and earned his way onto the Texans. In a way, it’s
romantically fortuitous; he finally got drafted in our movie at Radio City, as a Cleveland Brown!”
To everyone connected to the film, the participation of the NFL was regarded as key, and once
the organization signed on to cooperate on Draft Day, channels of information were thrown open,
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allowing Reitman and his team access to the kind of nuts-and-bolts knowledge that would go a long way
to assure authenticity in a movie about one of the most important annual events on the NFL’s calendar.
“There was a very long negotiating process with the NFL to get their permission,” shares
Reitman. “The good news is they loved the script right from the beginning. They had certain issues with
certain things that weren't accurate, and we changed those things. But they really asked for very little in
terms of making changes. Their real concern was that we use everything accurately. We were very
careful with who the NFL partners were, and keeping that all straight. Through this process, they
seemed to trust that I was going to do the best version of this movie.”
Joe Medjuck offers, “Once we started working with the NFL, we kept finding parallels to things
already in the script—episodes that occur during the actual draft that we have portrayed in our movie.
Teams do an incredible amount of research and then suddenly, it all comes down to these three days,
and there is a ten-minute window in which to make a decision.”
As the script continued to evolve, Joseph and Rothman were also privy to a lot of insider
information, courtesy of the likes of Mike Tannenbaum, former General Manager of the New York Jets,
and New York Post sportswriter Steve Serby, among others. In the course of their schooling, the pair
acquired additional input on what a GM may or may not do during the course of the draft. But
authenticity aside, for filmmakers, Draft Day is about its characters, the real people involved in the
kaleidoscopic events packed into the titular day.
Rothman asserts, “One of my favorite movies of all time is The Hustler with Paul Newman, and I
don’t care at all about pool. I know nothing about pool. While the movie is ostensibly about pool, it’s
actually about people…about what makes a winner, what makes a loser, and how you define each of
those terms.”
“Draft Day is a story about football of course, but it's really a story about relationships,” agrees
Reitman. “In particular, familial relationships with his mother, and with his father, who had just passed
away the week before. There’s also the story of the three potential rookies that could be drafted. Draft
Day is a life changing event for five thousand college players who have devoted their whole young lives
to the hope and dream that one day they were going to be part of a professional football team, and very
few of them finally make it. By shooting during the real draft, we had this opportunity of looking and
meeting some of the real people who are in the midst of all that, and witness the extraordinary weight
that's on their shoulders and what a life changing event that one day, that one night becomes.”
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CASTING “DRAFT DAY”
For the role of Sonny Weaver Jr.—the man at the center of story—filmmakers cast iconic actor
Kevin Costner.
“While I was reading the screenplay in the middle of the night, there was just one face that kept
coming up,” comments Reitman. “Frankly, the part was written for someone in his mid-thirties, because
a lot of general managers are young, but only one face came to my mind all the time… I kept seeing
Kevin Costner. There was something about his all-American sincerity and the weight of his character
that I had seen in so many other movies, particularly his sports related movies, that I felt that he would
be perfect for Sonny Jr.”
Medjuck concurs: “Kevin’s obviously a sportsman, and he enjoys sports. Up until recently, he’s
often played a player, and now he’s at an age where he can play a manager. He was the first person we
thought of for Sonny Jr. The script reads for him—Costner has that aura of an all-American athlete and
someone interested in sports.”
“Kevin has both the gravitas and the believability for that role. The movie takes place in a real
NFL environment, where you truly believe this is not an actor who’s playing this part, he's a person who
really belongs there,” adds Reitman
As the center of the film—a good Midwestern sports guy—Bell feels that Costner has the right
mix of authenticity and authority. She says, “In a way, Kevin feels like people we know. He feels like he
could be my next-door neighbor. That relatability really will pull viewers into the story and have them
empathize with him in his unenviable position.”
“He’s an American, and I play American characters, for the most part,” comments Costner.
“Sonny is taking a beating that day and it is coming from everywhere… from his mother, from his
girlfriend, from his own boss, and from a town that has gone too long without a winner. It’s all falling
down on him to the point where he can’t even turn a corner or turn on the radio without hearing his
name. It’s not his imagination that there are people after his head.”
Not only does Sonny Jr. have to somehow please all of the people who come crashing into his
life on that day—girlfriend, mother, fans, coach, owner, agents, players—he has to do battle with one of
the most formidable foes a man can ever come up against…his own past.
Sonny Weaver is Junior to THE Sonny Weaver, beloved former head coach of the Cleveland
Browns, after whom the practice field is named. After assuming the mantle of GM of the team, at some
point, Sonny Jr., had to fire Sonny Sr., an action for which he is still continually tried in the court of public
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opinion…and found wanting. As his character points out, everything now takes place in the everwatchful eye of 24-hour news coverage, with sportscasters filling air time by playing an unending game
of ‘what if?’
Upon Costner’s acceptance of the part, the actor shared his insights on the role with filmmakers,
adding personal touches and takes on the character—facets which the screenwriters were more than
happy to paint into Sonny Jr.
“Sonny makes a decision but on the surface, it doesn’t feel right, but he just keeps clawing. He
doesn’t give up, he doesn’t run to the shadows and eventually, almost like in football, a gap starts to
open, not by design, but because he didn’t fade,” says Costner. “He hung in there and a gap came and
he stepped through it. Some people thought of it as genius that he would do that, something that was a
manipulated plan, but I saw it as somebody who didn’t give up and when the opening came, he still had
a clear head and he saw it. Sometimes when you’re going to be the leader of some group, and you have
to evaluate talent, you do it in an unconventional way because maybe you see things that other people
don’t see.”
In order to better his team’s position, Sonny Jr. barters away his seventh pick, along with the
next three years’ first round picks, all to obtain the number one pick in the draft this year. But before
the barrage of naysayers, opinion offerers, and just plain haters, the first person who enters Sonny Jr.’s
life on this all-important day is someone who steps out of the bathroom, post-shower—his girlfriend Ali.
She also happens to be his colleague in charge of salary caps for the Browns. Tough, intelligent, easy on
the eyes, a woman with focus and ambition—this is Ali.
“Jennifer Garner is now one of my favorite people in the world,” states Reitman. “I had heard
from other directors what a joy she is to work with, and she's just so smart. She's so aware of
everything that goes on the set. I love the simplicity of what she did in this film and the complexities
that comes through with that simplicity. She looks gorgeous. The relationship between her and Costner
is really effective, and a lot of it has to do with the warmth that comes from within Jennifer.”
In the course of their extensive research, the filmmakers discovered multiple teams who employ
females as salary cap managers, which supported and dovetailed with the idea of the creative team. As
Medjuck puts it, “We wanted her to have a job that gave a responsibility, and also one that provided her
with a strong interest in the game.”
For Garner, the filmmakers had her interest once she had read the script. She confirms, “The
screenplay just crackles off the page. When the script is this good, and then you learn Ivan Reitman is
involved, and then Kevin signs on, and then Denis Leary…you realize they can pretty much handpick
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whoever they want, and with all of that together, it generates even more excitement about the project
overall.”
“I’ve had great women in my movies all through my career and to get a great woman in your
movie, you have to write one first,” states Costner. “Who can play it and that list really starts to shrink,
and in this instance, we had to have somebody that had this All American look. Ali was a cheerleader,
who grew up loving the Browns, but also had this work ethic that took her to college. Jennifer just looks
like that girl. She has a significant job and she makes it all work. We have this relationship that she’s
decided would be better if it be kept silent. But like anything in the world of women, when they decide
they don’t want it to be a secret anymore, they change the rules, which confuses us guys. Every guy in
the world gets who she is and I totally get why Sonny’s so screwed up right now. We draw on what’s
charming about relationships, and watching Sonny deal with her, you think, oh my goodness, that could
be us.”
The actress found much to admire in her onscreen character. Garner recounts, “Ali has been
raised on the Cleveland Browns, a die-hard lifer fan. When she was 15, she wrote a letter to Coach
Sonny Weaver Sr., telling him how he should have one of his guys practicing in a different way. That led
to an internship, and then her going from smaller jobs to bigger jobs. I’m sure they probably put her
through law school, and now she has this big job. She lives and breathes and dies the Cleveland
Browns.”
Garner, in fact, shares more than a little bit with Ali and pronounces, “I love football, and I grew
up watching it—I went to every game, because I was in the marching band. My senior year, I was the
water girl for my high school football team. In West Virginia, where I’m from, we had WVU or the
Thundering Herd Marshall, but no professional team. So we would watch Cleveland or Pittsburgh—we
kind of traded around our loyalties.”
Ali Bell comments, “Jennifer represents what it’s like to be a contemporary woman, and she
really embodies that in a way that’s wonderful and strong, really fearless. She and Kevin are fantastic
together.”
Garner concludes, “She has to be as strong as the men, and let a lot roll off of her back. She
can’t sit around and whine when they say something silly…because they’re men. Ali knows about the
Browns, she knows about football, and she is not going to be condescended to or patronized in any way,
shape or form.”
“Sonny and Ali are the two most important characters and their relationship is what viewers will
really latch onto,” says Rajiv Joseph.
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The second most important person in the story is Sonny Jr.’s head coach, Vince Penn, a recent
hire by the Browns and someone who has no problem disclosing his feelings or sharing his thoughts on
what exactly a person may have done wrong.
Producer Medjuck offers, “Denis Leary plays the head coach of the team, and he’s come from a
team where he won the Super Bowl, and now he’s at the Browns. The Coach has his own ideas on the
team’s draft pick, and makes them known in no uncertain terms. Unfortunately for Sonny, he’s usually
argumentative, and always opinionated.”
“It was very important for me that the man who played the coach, an antagonist to the general
manager, have a totally different acting and emotional energy for those scenes to really crack,” Reitman
comments. “I immediately gravitated to Denis Leary, who I really didn't know but followed his standup
and television work. The Irish swagger that he's got and words trip off his tongue very easily. I needed
somebody who could play eighth and sixteenth notes against Costner’s direct, more singular whole
notes. There is a real musical energy to their scenes together.”
Leary had his own definite ideas when he read the screenplay for Draft Day and shares, “You get
so many scripts, and most of them are not good, or they’re shooting some place where I don’t
necessarily want to be, or I’m already busy. There are so many reasons to not do a movie, and the
chances are by the time the script reaches your door, it’s a no-go. When I heard Ivan’s name, and that
he was doing a football movie, I automatically thought, ‘Okay, well, I’m just not going to get my hopes
up.’ I got the script, and knew it had been recognized as one of the Blacklist scripts, a script that was
chosen as one of the best unmade scripts around, and it was great. It was good, it was funny, it was
heartfelt, and had a lot of football in it. But, I’m still a pessimistic optimist… I expect the worst to
happen, and I look forward to getting it over with. But I got the part, which is great.”
The screenwriters had more than a general idea about the tough-as-nails character of Coach
Penn—in fact, they modeled the character after Jon Gruden, Super Bowl-winner and former coach of
the Oakland Raiders and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. “He’s known for his intensity and his brash
personality,” offers Scott Rothman.
Producer Bell illustrates, “Coach Penn and Sonny Weaver Jr. are equals—they’re part of the
same team—but they do want very different things. It was really important when we cast the role that
we found somebody that could teeter-totter with Kevin, where the balance legitimately would shift and
one person really wasn’t in control all the time. We wanted a chess game, with two equals going at one
another, and Denis really brings that.”
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“That’s good writing because it can’t always be one way,” says Costner. “It doesn’t mince
words, I say what I think, but then I go on and try to work with him. Coach Penn says what he thinks and
then there’s this begrudging thing. That makes for better characters to watch. I can’t just be the good
guy and he’s the bad guy. What we can be are two different personalities and we are not working
together and we seem at odds. But my neck is on the line, it’s going to be my decision, but everything I
do is so that he can succeed. Coach Penn may not believe that, and would probably do it differently.”
Leary matter-of-factly says, “I hadn’t played a coach yet. It was a great opportunity for me as a
sports fan. I’m a huge movie guy and a huge sports guy, and you can’t really be that without being a
Costner fan. I don’t like golf, but I loved ‘Tin Cup.’ To work with Costner… this was a chance for me to
work with a really great actor, an icon for me. I never would have thought that I could be in a sports
movie with Kevin Costner…or a Western. Those were my two fantasy choices with him.”
It seems that every person in Sonny Jr.’s life is a force to be reckoned with, and his mother is
definitely in that bracket. Filmmakers turned to Ellen Burstyn to bring Barb Weaver to life.
“Ellen Burstyn is one of those treasures, who has had a long spectacular career in films playing
both the comedic side and the dramatic side, and you buy into both of them,” says Reitman. “The most
wonderful thing is Kevin really looks like her son, they have the same eyes, bone structure, and same
skin tone. Barb's a tough character in the movie and Ellen pulls it off. She walks this very careful line
where the audience is not sure about her for a long period, doesn't even like her for a while. But at the
same time, she's funny and then we get emotionally involved in that story because it reminds a lot of us
about our relationships with our own mothers.”
Burstyn’s knowledge on the game of football was far from encyclopedic, and she concedes,
“What I know about football is what I learned from being a cheerleader in high school, so I know the
game. But the teams and the whole concept of a draft day, I didn’t know anything about. The first time
I read the script, it was like reading a foreign language. I read it a few times and I was able to figure it
out—it’s like a ‘backstage at the football game’ movie, and once I got there, I found it incredibly
interesting and compelling.”
While filmmakers knew the highest level of dramatic capability would accompany Burstyn, they
were unaware of something else that she would bring to the game. Ali Bell says, “Ellen’s comedic timing
is absolutely impeccable. We sit on set watching her read lines that we didn’t even know were funny,
and that are just huge, giant laughs. She’s a total sweetheart to have around. One day she was walking
up and down the football field in the rain and never once complained; she just smiled and was lovely to
everyone. You can see her and Kevin being mother and son.”
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Not only does Barb present her own thoughts to Sonny Jr. about what she feels is best for the
team, she also brings an issue she feels has gone unresolved. Burstyn contends, “Barb’s husband, Sonny
Sr., has been gone a week, and she’s involved in carrying out his wishes and the reading of the will, and
it’s all happening on the same day as the draft. It’s definitely something that complicates her son’s day.
But she’s been around the team forever, and knows all of the ins and outs. She’s acutely aware of the
team’s problems and hopes that her son can finally elevate the team to a winning streak.”
Perhaps one of the wildest cards in the deck with which Sonny Jr. plays is the team owner,
Anthony Molina. Rich, sharp and headstrong—filmmakers looked for someone who could turn on a
dime and be believable as both father figure and worst enemy.
Ali Bell says, “Ivan and Frank Langella have developed a close bond over the years, as they’ve all
grown up in the business up together. You couldn’t ask for a better Molina than Frank…because he is
slightly scary. He has this wonderful way in his performance of telling you he’s going to just rip your
heart out, but it also feels like he’s offered you a cookie at the same time. It’s a great complexity to that
character that is totally delicious.”
“Frank Langella is one of the world’s great actors. He just played ‘King Lear’ in New York on
stage, and he’s really our King Lear as the owner of the team. Frank is not a big football fan and didn't
understand a lot of the lingo, but he could follow and really got into the drama. It was his idea to wear
the glasses, and as soon as I saw them on his face, it felt extraordinarily distinctive for this film and made
total sense. He has the physical stature and the voice, to bring this kind of weight to his character so
believe in him. You get it immediately. He has this wonderful sense of humor that goes with the
comedy, that's really part of the secret of this movie. This is the third time I've worked with him and
each time has been a wonderful addition to the working relationship.”
Langella expresses gratitude for Reitman boosting his career and taking him into his character
acting phase. On the character of Anthony Molina, Langella reasons, “My first impression was that I
know absolutely nothing about football and that I’m going to be playing the owner of a football team.
Then, that struck me as the right state of mind to be in. For Anthony, at any rate, you have a lot of
money, you buy a team, and you don’t have to know too much.”
“Anthony’s a mogul,” continues Langella. “He’s someone with endless amounts of money, jets,
limousines and power. What that gives him, which most of us don’t understand, is that ability to get on
your own plane, go where you want to, do what you want to. He’s used to having his own way,
controlling the field, every single day of his life.”
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Costner adds, “We put a world class actor in that role, and Frank inhabited it immediately. He
clearly is a man that’s in charge, but sometimes it’s the last voice that whispered something into his
head that he carries into a moment. Whereas my character is thinking long term and I’m very aware of
why something happened. He’s a total result oriented person. In this world, you’re measured by your
end result, but for Sonny Jr., there’s a foundation that he’s trying to build and he has instincts. You
don’t always go for the flash. They have a really unique relationship, but I’m never under the illusion
that he wouldn’t fire me tomorrow, so he can create the father son relationship all he wants, but I can
be thrown on the curb so quickly. We’ve created a very realistic character in Anthony, and Frank was
beautiful in it.”
“Like most guys who own enormous, powerful entities like this,” Langella picks up, “he’s
thinking of how to make a lot of money, to fill those seats. Sonny, Kevin’s character, is thinking of how to
get the best team possible together, so they have two separate issues. As the owner, Anthony wants the
best team, of course, but also, he wants as much razzle-dazzle and show business as he can.”
While the motives for a lot of the people in Sonny’s life may be apparent, for his ex-wife Angie
played by Rosanna Arquette, they may not be so cut-and-dried.
For the actress, the bond she feels that has kept her character in the picture is not the thin one
she shares with her ex-husband…it is the very supportive and mutual one she has with her ex-mother-inlaw Barb. Arquette gives her back story: “Angie has known Barb since she was a teenager. Angie and
Sonny were together for many years, and they were married young. She went through a lot with him,
and she knows him very well. Barb was the mother figure she might not have ever really had, and they
maintain a strong friendship—which isn’t exactly what Sonny would like. But in Barb’s mind, there is still
the spark of hope that Angie and Sonny might get back together.”
Any man would have more than a full plate to deal with were it only these people in Sonny’s real
and professional family. But swirling around the GM is also an array of football players—some draftee
hopefuls, some accomplished professional athletes—and one very powerful agent… and Sonny Jr. has to
resolve all of their interworking relationships by the close of the day.
To fill these roles, filmmakers turned to a variety of sources, including both the entertainment
industry and the world of sports. Those cast include: Chadwick Boseman (who portrayed legendary
baseball player Jackie Robinson in 42) as Vontae Mack, a highly touted outside linebacker who plays for
Ohio State University; Josh Pence (one-half of the Winklevoss twins from The Social Network) as Bo
Callahan, the undisputed Number One draft pick, a golden boy quarterback from the University of
Wisconsin; Tom Welling (the young Superman on the long-running series “Smallville”) as Brian Drew, the
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Browns’ current quarterback, coming off of a season of less-than-stellar performance and injury;
footballer Arian Foster (current running back for the Houston Texans) as Ray Jennings, a possible legacy
for the Browns—a powerful Florida State running back who would be much higher in the draft, were it
not for those recent legal issues dogging him; former NFL player and now actor Terry Crews (Chris’ dad
on the hit comedy “Everybody Hates Chris”) as legendary Cleveland Browns linebacker and Ray Jennings’
father, Earl Jennings; and multi-hyphenate Sean Combs as über-agent Chris Crawford, who reps the
rising star, QB Bo Callahan.
In describing outside linebacker Vontae Mack, Joe Medjuck says, “Mack is a defensive player, as
Molina complains in the movie, defensive players don’t necessarily make a splash when you draft them.
But Sonny really likes Vontae, and feels he has great character. His older sister has recently passed
away, and he’s now raising his nephews, and he has a very close relationship with his grandmother. We
cast Chadwick Boseman, who just played Jackie Robinson in 42.”
Reitman says. “Chad Boseman is a remarkable young actor on the scene. He's one of the most
handsome men I've ever seen and he has great both physical presence and internal energy. He's funny
and he's got this beautiful smile and I knew he would be a great Vontae Mack, one of our rookies. He
had just come off as the leading star of 42, so there was a lot of talk about him. People were all over
him. He liked the script, thank God. Fortunately I was able to talk him into doing the movie, because he
makes such a strong impression in this film. It's not only because he's a good actor, but there’s a lovely
emotional quality to him that we fall in love with, and that is a very important component to this
character.”
Rajiv Joseph adds, “Vontae knows who he is as a man, and he knows who he is as a player, and
that appeals to Sonny, especially now, where Sonny’s also starting to question who he is and is trying
very hard to hold onto the things that he believes in.”
Ali Bell concurs, “As a player, he’s really good at what he does. He’s a little like most of us,
actually, in that he’s not the best at what he does, but he’s certainly far from the worst at what he does.
He’s a good guy you want to win. That’s why Chadwick is so great in this role, because he brings such a
power and strength to the character. You just want to be on his team.”
Chadwick Boseman is clearly a big fan of the character of Vontae Mack, when he extols, “He
looks like he’s rough around the edges, like he’s iron and steel, but he has a soft side inside. But he’s
defensive line—he’s the guy that will take your head off. Whatever he looks like, there is a deeper
reason why he’s playing the game. He’s not looking to make millions of dollars so that he can go party,
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get women, and live it up. I tried to create him, knowing that he’s going to be somebody you can build a
family or a team around.”
There is nothing rough around the edges of quarterback Bo Callahan. He positively gleams with
possibilities. Not only is he most probably going to receive the Heisman Trophy, he will go on to become
a Hall of Famer. Callahan is a natural athlete, a natural leader, a looker, and nearly a personification of
what makes a great quarterback great.
“We all know that guy,” offers Bell, “the one where life is served on a silver platter, and maybe
not undeservedly. We hadn’t thought much about Bo until Josh Pence came in to read a scene, a phone
conversation with Sonny, and Bo says next to nothing in the exchange. I have never seen an actor do so
much with so little on the page. Ivan and I just looked at each other when he left the room and
suddenly, Bo Callahan came to life for us. Maybe we had only considered the character as onedimensional, but none of us are one-dimensional… every one of us, we’re all incredibly vulnerable. Josh
brings something wonderful to the role, something that illuminates this kid who’s been told what to do
every step of the way.”
While Pence may believe that his character does have that golden boy glow about him, he is
keen to point out that on this day in Bo’s life, he finds himself daunted by what is happening around
him. Pence says, “The script is tight, and it really follows the eight to ten hours leading up to the draft.
We pick up on Bo in a moment where he’s a little bit of a fish out of water. This is not his bag. He’s a
football player. He does what he does on the field. I’m sure he’s done a ton of interviews in college, but
this is also the moment that he’s been dreaming of his entire life. It’s D-day. There’s a nervous energy,
because he’s seen people fall many times before, so he’s concerned, but he’s also excited. He’s got one
of the best agents around, and this is going to be his day. He maybe even has to tell himself that, and
more than once.”
If Bo Callahan is a quarterback whose time has come, Brian Drew is a quarterback whose time
may be nearly passed… at least as far as most Cleveland Browns fans, and staff for that matter, are
concerned. But while Drew may be down, he himself keeps fighting not to be pushed out. He’s the type
of athlete that never wants the last game to be over—the one that will fight through injury, through
aging, through whatever it is that keeps him off of the gridiron.
Medjuck says, “Tom Welling was one of the last actors we cast. But that worked for us, because
he understood that driven aspect of Drew beautifully.”
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“Watching Tom go toe to toe with Costner was one of the most exciting days we had on set,”
Bell adds. “You can feel two people so desperate to cling to and hold their lives together. We’re really
lucky it was Tom.”
Another star that may be on the rise is Florida State running back Ray Jennings, but that rise
may be slowed by some apparent legal kerfuffles in Florida. Hometown players, however, always have
their fans, and most would like to see Ray follow in the footsteps of his talented Cleveland Browns’ alum
father, Earl. With filmmakers bent on establishing the reality of draft day, nothing is better at
establishing reality than something…real. Enter Arian Foster, running back for the Houston Texans.
Foster heard about the project through his management, and submitted a scene taped on his
digital camera. “It’s really an honor that Ivan Reitman actually gave me a personal phone call after he
saw my audition tape and said that he was impressed—that was humbling enough in itself. Looking at
the films he’s done and the actors he’s worked with, it’s an honor he would even dial my number. I
have to admit, being drafted at Radio City Music Hall, which I was not in real life, it was really exciting,
especially with Terry Crews as my father.”
Former NFL player-turned-actor Terry Crews, again, brought verisimilitude to his scenes with
Arian, as a former player cheering on a current player and supporting him through the hurdles of the
drafting process.
When Joe Medjuck saw the 2001 release Monster’s Ball, he didn’t realize that one of the
performances that impressed him was given by entertainment mogul Sean Combs. “We all just thought
he was a really, really good actor.” So, when the Draft Day team heard that Combs was interested in the
project, filmmakers were eager about the prospect.
Medjuck describes, “He plays a really good agent, Chris Crawford, who now represents Bo
Callahan. Agents are very important to potential draftees, particularly the top-rated ones. Sean heard
about the script, and later told the writers that he’s read quite a lot in his career, and Draft Day was one
of the few scripts that he had to keep reading until he knew what happened to everyone.”
“We have gotten actors to do parts in this movie that no film should be lucky enough to get,”
Bell admits. “People love the script so much, and Sean Combs was one of those people who really
wanted to be involved. At first, we thought that the small part, wasn’t worthy of his acting ability. But in
the role, he and Josh play so well off of each other. When Bo shows any vulnerability, you would want
someone like Sean ‘Puffy’ Combs smacking you around, telling you to get your head back in the game.”
Combs himself acknowledges, “I try to always surround myself and work with the best directors
and actors. With this ensemble, it’s a gift just being around, even for my small role. If you blink, you’ll
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miss me. But the information and education I received was priceless. It was a role that I thought that
even for the few seconds that I would be on the screen, I would be able to add some color, some flavor,
and I really hope that I accomplished that.”
“A lot of people may not know this, but my dream was to be an NFL football player,” Combs
admits. “I broke my leg in my last summer camp of high school, so I became a musician, an
entrepreneur, and an actor. But in high school, football was everything. It was that balance—do great
in school, and the payoff was to play football. I was raised on it, and it was a dream. So if I can get close
to the game in any way, shape or form—maybe even owning a team one day, but for now, this movie—I
can live vicariously through the players for a few days.”
Draft Day also features an amazing roster of sports talent—players, on-air talent, and real-life
icons—who make appearances throughout the film. From current NFL teams, fans should be able to
spot New York Giants tackle James Brewer, New York Jets wide receiver Stephen Hill, New York Jets
linebacker Demario Davis, Buffalo Bills wide receiver Ramses Barden, and free-agent punter Zoltan
Mesko (team affiliations as of March 2014), all portraying draft players at Radio City Music Hall.
Appearing as themselves are Chris Berman (anchor of ESPN’s “SportsCenter,” “Monday Night
Countdown” and “Sunday NFL Countdown,” to name a few), Jon Gruden (the youngest coach to ever
win a Super Bowl, and now an NFL analyst for ESPN), Mel Kiper (an analyst for ESPN’s annual NFL draft
coverage since 1984), Deion Sanders (former baseball player and Pro Football Hall of Famer, now NFL
Network analyst), Mike Mayock (former New York Giants safety, now game and draft analyst for the NFL
Network and analyst for NBC’s coverage of Notre Dame football), and Rich Eisen (sports journalist for
the NFL Network)—and filmmakers might have even included more NFL, on-air or Hollywood talent, just
to keep viewers in the game.
Perhaps one of the most auspicious sports figures to appear in Draft Day is the man
commentators customarily refer to as “the most powerful man in sports”—filmmakers, cast and crew
were all honored to host the current Commissioner of the National Football League, Roger Goodell, the
day he appeared on the Radio City Music Hall set in his cameo role.
For filming at the Cleveland Browns First Energy Stadium, filmmakers drafted actual at-the-time
Cleveland Browns players to appear alongside the cast, including defensive back Joe Haden, linebacker
D’Qwell Jackson, offensive lineman Alex Mack, nose tackle Phil Taylor, and defensive back T.J. Ward.
(Only Haden and Taylor are currently signed with the team.)
Cleveland Browns V.I.P. figures Bernie Kosar (Ohio native and former Browns quarterback), Joe
Banner (former C.E.O. of the Browns and former President of the Philadelphia Eagles), and the
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legendary Jim Brown (who holds a record-setting nine-year career as Browns running back, was key in
the Browns’ 1964 Championship Win and has been named “the greatest professional football player
ever” by Sporting News), all appear as themselves.
“We were extraordinarily fortunate to have this remarkable large cast,” Reitman comments. “I
needed to find lots of actors who were only in one scene, but they had to carry that scene where they
had three or four pages of dense dialogue that you had to totally believe professionally and from a
performance standpoint. For example, the general managers of Houston and of Seattle… these are not
really large parts, but if they don't carry off their scenes, the whole film’s truth and rhythms fall apart.”
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ABOUT THE PRODUCTION
Prep
Making a film about a fictitious NFL football team (called, say, the Dayton Azures) on one of the
most important days of the team’s year would be challenging simply by its very nature. But making a
film about an actual NFL football team called the Cleveland Browns (slightly altered for cinematic
treatment)…next to impossible, were the team not a key participant in the making of the movie.
Joe Medjuck underscores, “Draft Day is about their team, but it’s not. It’s a slightly parallel
universe—our team shares a lot of the history of the Cleveland Browns, but the actual Browns are not
owned by Anthony Molina, nor are any of the coaches in our film the real coaches of the Browns.
However, we’ve tried to intertwine it with the Browns—some of their players are in the movie, and they
have been incredibly generous in allowing us to use their facilities and stadium, not to mention the
endless technical advice in regards to our art direction and terminology in the script… in establishing the
overall reality of our real-but-not-real team.”
Maybe even more key than sharing facilities and lexicon, Ali Bell feels that the actual spirit of the
team pervades Draft Day. She says, “Both Cleveland and the Browns are fighters. They never give up—
they really represent America.”
Reitman adds, “Cleveland is really undergoing a renaissance now. It's really quite a beautiful
city, with all kinds of different vistas. Cleveland really turned out to be a perfect place to set the story.
It's a city with rabid fans, who believe in the team through thick and thin, and mostly thin. Part of the
fun of really shooting it in Cleveland is we could see our movie play out on the streets every single day,
just from the people you met in restaurants, and from dealing with the local media personalities who
became characters in our film. It was wonderful to shoot in Cleveland. I’d shoot another movie there in
a second.”
Former Browns quarterback Bernie Kosar notes, “So much in the movie is about passion, heart
and following your instincts, and I can’t recall a time when I didn’t do that when I was playing. When
you are in between the white lines out there, a lot of it has to do with passion and heart, playing without
having to check yourself. Off the field, you have to be proper and measured, but none of that goes into
playing football.”
Iconic athlete Jim Brown observes, “The Cleveland Browns fans are known as the greatest fans
in the world. They’re all over the world and they’re vocal, and they were used to winning. Now, they’re
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about ready to blow the roof off of the stadium if we don’t get a championship! They’re loyal and
passionate, and they want to see a winner.”
The more production interfaced with the Browns organization, the more filmmakers began to
recognize similarities. Joe Medjuck elaborates, “The way a football organization and the NFL work, it
does have more than a few parallels with filmmaking. There is a great degree of discipline, people show
up on time, and teamwork is, of course, the centerpiece. The existence of a hierarchy, and the amount
of organization it takes to pull off something like the season opener or get a film onto thousands of
screens… they’re very close in many ways.”
The active participation and welcoming attitude of not only the Browns, but also the National
Football League, was quite literally a cause for celebration. Producer Bell comments, “It has been
amazing and so much fun collaborating with the team and the NFL, and the amount of information
we’ve learned about the inner workings of football has helped us in so many ways. The backdoor access
that we’ve had to the NFL and the Browns, both of whom literally rolled out the red carpet for us…to be
on set and meeting football players that we’ve loved and idolized…to be there at the draft when your
team selects players and starts towards the future… I’m never going to get to work on a movie that I
love as much as this. It has been really personal and a joy.”
“We had a whole series of meetings with the various staff groups of the NFL, and as a result they
gained more and more confidence that we were really going to make our best efforts to show the NFL in
the most accurate and best light,” adds Reitman. “Of course, I also asked to shoot at Radio City, so they
also had to get Radio City’s permission.”
For some of the actors, it took more than a familiarization with terminology and finding a level
of comfort on the athletic settings—they needed to become believable stars of the game. To assist in
this, production brought aboard Michael Fisher as football coordinator, with more than two decades of
experience creating believable athletes and sporting action for the cameras.
“Josh Pence as Bo Callahan,” begins Fisher, “he’s the star quarterback from Wisconsin, the next
John Elway. We started back in Los Angeles. Josh had played baseball and was athletic, but he’d never
played football, so we hired a quarterback coach for him. They started working on the mechanics, the
little things, the nuances of playing quarterback while in the huddle, command at the line of scrimmage,
to get him to feel confident being on a football field.”
Pence offers, “It’s a little tricky. I never played football, besides in the street, as a kid growing
up, but I did play a lot of other sports. It’s really about working out the mechanics—the motion in
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baseball is different from the motion in football. In baseball, you want to throw over the top, and in
football, you’ve got to shoot through the barrel, as my coach would say.”
Movement was part of the learning curve for Pence, but so was actually changing the machine.
He continues, “After my last audition, Ivan wanted me to gain about 30 pounds in three weeks. I told
him that I’d do the best I could. I started seriously working out and eating a football player diet,
between six- to eight-thousand calories a day, for about four weeks—it was nearly a full-time job in and
of itself. I lifted four days a week, and was able to put on nearly 20 pounds in three weeks. It was really
helpful, because it literally transformed the way I move.”
Fisher picks back up, “Chadwick Boseman is Vontae Mack, the ferocious linebacker from Ohio
State. Chadwick is also athletic—we’ve seen him play baseball, and now we needed to see him play
football. Production set him up with a plan and a dietician, to help him get bigger in a small period of
time. He gained and really started to look more like a linebacker—he played the part well.”
Boseman explains, “For baseball, you’re really trying to stay as relaxed and loose as possible.
Not to say that there isn’t an amount of weight lifting at some points in the process, but for 42, I wasn’t
really lifting weights. It was more about calisthenics, reps and getting the arms strong. I needed to beef
up for Draft Day, so I put on about 22 pounds. The training was eating and lifting, which I usually don’t
do. The lifting was either an enormous amount of reps or an enormous amount of weight. Now, it kind
of feels like I’m walking around in somebody else’s body.”
Fisher’s mantra—just like Reitman and his teams’—was authenticity. He remarks, “Any time
you do any kind of sports on film—and that’s what I do—you want it to look real. You want people to
watch the movie and think, ‘Wow, how did they do that?’ My goal is for someone to watch the film and
think that it was all real game footage. Both of the guys did really great.”
The athlete/actors were not the only ones participating in a preparatory regimen. Jennifer
Garner says, “The moment I started talking to Ivan about the job, the NFL Channel went on in my house
and it’s been on ever since. As an actor just out of college, I had plenty of time to care a lot about
Monday morning stats. I definitely knew my stuff then, but since then, life has taken over. For research,
I found and watched every game referenced in the movie, read everything I could about the Browns and
their history—all of the drama that this city has been through just to have the team that they love so
much! Then, I mostly spent time with Megan Rogers here at the Cleveland Browns, who has the job that
my character has, which is the head of the salary cap. I did it to really learn, but also because I think
she’s so badass. For real, badass. Not pretend.”
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To prepare for the role of Coach Penn, Denis Leary created his own syllabus. He started by
researching with NFL coaches, checking his lines while trying to get the vernacular under his belt. Then,
he dove into watching documentaries on the sport. He explains, “There was a special about the top ten
NFL coaches of all time that came on while we were shooting. I had also taped multiple episodes of the
NFL Network’s ‘Football Life.’ It was a really great excuse for me to tell my wife, ‘I can’t watch television
with you tonight. I have to go do my research for Draft Day and watch six hours of old Super Bowls.’”
Sean Combs also stayed fairly close to home as he went about familiarizing himself with the
lifestyle of a top agent. He says, “Having had agents and currently having agents, I pretty much already
had some insight into how they operate. I had some other conversations with a few agents at NCAA,
watched a documentary on Tim Tebow, and some of ESPN’s ‘30 for 30’ documentaries on agents and on
the draft.”
In the end, it was all about being able to bridge the worlds of sports, cinema, and storytelling
into a cohesive, and entertaining, feature film. Josh Pence sums it up when he says, “I wouldn’t have
been able to come out here on the field and do any of what I needed to do, if I hadn’t had that bit of
training.”
Filming
Draft Day principal photography began on Wednesday, April 25, at the 2013 NFL Draft at Radio
City Music Hall in New York City, one of several key locations that figured in the story. Oddly enough,
that location wasn’t always included in the script.
Producer Medjuck explains, “In the early version of the script, the draft itself was discussed, but
took place off-stage. Ivan said, ‘No, let’s try to go to the draft and actually shoot while it’s going on.’ I
guess you could re-stage it, if you have millions of dollars extra that need spending. But what we did
instead, we obtained permission from the NFL—who were very cooperative—to go to the draft, bring
our cameras, and utilize cameramen who have worked for NFL Films and have filmed at the draft
before.”
What ensued was nearly a documentary-style filming of the actual draft, but with fictitious
characters from Draft Day woven into the happenings. With the exception of some graphics playing on
the screens, the set dressing for the film was what was being used for the nationally televised event.
Any scenes that took place in the building, but away from the draft in the auditorium were filmed while
the draft was in progress. Any shooting on the stage, the auditorium/floor, or concerning the NFL
Network or ESPN had to take place before the general public was admitted to the Hall.
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“We even got permission from the teams’ player representatives, who sit at tables right in the
front of the auditorium. They all came in the next afternoon wearing the same clothes they had the
night before, so that I could actually direct scripted scenes closer against all those people,” comments
Reitman.
Exteriors were shot with Langella as team owner Molina arriving at Radio City Music Hall, with
the crowd gathered (a combination of extras and true fans of the draft) to follow the goings-on inside
the building. During breaks in the actual telecast, filmmakers were able to capture establishing snippets,
including Langella as Molina onstage while the commissioner announces the beginning of the draft.
Since the televised broadcast of the draft takes place over three days, beginning on a Thursday,
Saturday morning sees a relaxation in the NFL schedule and fewer people present—that was when
Reitman and team really exploited the location, capturing scenes specifically for the film’s narrative.
This included the ‘green room onstage,’ the area where potential draftees are seated with their families.
Production was able to commandeer the space and people it with Draft Day actors and real football
players, some of whom were given speaking parts.
Reitman comments, “This movie would have been impossible without access from the National
Football League. As soon as I read it, I thought it would be impossible to make, unless we got
permission and cooperation from the NFL. It has to be real teams and the logos have to feel real.
Frankly, because the draft is really known as a television event to the country at large, and we're going
to play behind the scenes at that event, we have to start at the television event and be able to shoot
there. We used all those real characters including the Commissioner, Rich Eisen and Chris Berman and
all the other television personalities that are part of that.”
During each day filming at the draft, production was given a ‘hard out’ (an unmovable time by
which production has to have totally cleared and left the space), when access needed to be turned over
those actually taking part in the draft.
Bell states, “The access granted to us by the NFL at the draft was unprecedented. We were the
first feature film to ever be allowed in, and we had our work cut out for us—we needed to shoot about
20 pages of the script in the course of those three days.”
Wherever professional sports are played, there is a stadium. Draft Day, again, was given the
V.I.P. treatment back in Cleveland as doors opened into two more key locations: downtown’s
FirstEnergy Stadium, Home of the Cleveland Browns, and the Cleveland Browns Training and
Administrative Complex in Berea, Ohio.
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Opened in September of 1999 (on the site previously occupied by the Cleveland Municipal
Stadium, which stood from 1932 to 1996), the Stadium boasts seating for 72,300, making it the tenth
largest in the NFL. The FirstEnergy Stadium was built as part of a deal with the League to return the
Browns to Cleveland—they had moved to Baltimore and been re-christened the Ravens following the
’96 season—and to re-activate the franchise. The Browns rightfully returned in the fall of ’99, playing on
the newly created field of Kentucky bluegrass for the first time. The old stadium actually remains close
by, as the debris from its demolishing was sunk in Lake Erie to create an artificial reef. Filming took
place in a V.I.P. box standing in for the ‘Owner’s Box’ and in the tunnel leading onto the field.
Off the field—which is where a lion’s share of the team’s work takes place and where a good
portion of Draft Day is set—the Browns’ training complex and offices in Berea provided production with
a variety of settings, and filmmakers took advantage of them all, including: the weight, locker and men’s
rooms; the front of the complex; the offices; the field house; the cafeteria; various hallways and
vestibules; and the exterior practice field (renamed “Weaver Field” in the film). One key sequence
filmed on the field was shuffled from one shooting day to the next, thanks to inclement weather that
blew in at the 11th hour. The next day, as they were closing in on wrapping the scene, the ‘quiet on the
set’ was broken by a piercing alarm, warning anyone on the field to move indoors to avoid the lightning
that had been reported in the area—so the party of Costner, Garner, Leary, Burstyn and several others
beat a hasty retreat from the open field.
Ellen Burstyn remembers, “They were doing a long shot of me out on the field by myself, and
the camera was way over near the buildings. Suddenly, there was this loud alarm that went off. I had
never heard a lightning alarm, but I suspected that that’s what it was, so I started walking very fast
toward the building. Because they had the camera on me, they called out, ‘Walk slowly!’ I called back,
‘No, not on your life…I’m out of here!’”
The complex was a favorite with producer Bell, and not simply because of the diverse settings it
offered. She relates, “It was fantastic, because anytime we were about to shoot a scene and a question
would arise about something in the script, we could literally run into Cleveland Browns’ General
Manager Mike Lombardi’s office and ask, ‘About what we’re doing in this scene…would it ever happen?’
Then they’d come in with notes and suggestions. It was almost like dialing information, only for
questions about how a professional football team operates.” (Lombardi is no longer with the Browns).
The team would have been even more giving, allowing production use of the actual Browns’
administrative offices at the complex, were it not for the fact that they were under construction. As an
alternative, Cuyahoga Community College (known as Tri-C) also hosted the production, where the
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Browns’ corporate offices were re-created, building out from existing office and conference room space.
There, multiple key spaces were set up, including: Sonny Jr.’s office and office area (the Bull Pen); Ali’s
office; the Browns’ war room; Browns’ hallway with trophy case (dressed to capacity with nothing but
actual Browns’ trophies, awards and memorabilia); a supply room; and the war room of the Jacksonville
Jaguars in Florida. One of the unexpected benefits of the construction chaos at the Berea offices was
that all of the memorabilia normally featured in the rooms was in storage for safe-keeping… and,
therefore, made available to the production’s art department for use on-set.
Spare offices in a nearby law firm were transformed into such places as the Seattle Seahawks
war room; the offices of the Seahawks’ GM and team owner; and the office of the General Manager of
the Buffalo Bills, where principal photography was completed on June 26, 2013.
Filming also took place at multiple locations in and around Cleveland, Ohio, including: a water
park in Aurora, OH (Molina tells Sonny he needs to ‘make a splash’ with the draft); Cleveland’s Burke
Lakefront Airport (Molina calls Sonny to tell him he’s en route to NYC); Wade Park Lagoon (the Browns’
wide receiver reports in to Sonny about QB Brian Drew); Case Field at Case Western University (Bo’s
coach and Sonny Jr. trade opinions on their cell phones); and Dix Stadium at Kent State University
(where the teams of Wisconsin—with Bo Callahan—and Ohio State—with Vontae Mack—face each
other…providing the footage Sonny reviews on each player back in the war room).
Wherever anything relating to the Browns was going to be seen on camera—period helmets,
photos, memorabilia, magnetic boards—in most cases, the art department obtained the actual items
from the Browns’ offices. Where the originals could not be obtained or used, exact replicas were
created, which included game footballs, stationery, notepads, pens, pencils and mugs. Identical phones
were set up with graphics that match the ones in the complex. In two very special cases, one-of-a-kind
items were loaned to Draft Day that demonstrated the immense amount of trust the organization had
placed in the production: one was a typewriter from at the time GM Mike Lombardi’s office; and the
other was the team’s actual framed charter into the NFL.
Even though filming in operating facilities had its challenges (with an NFL football team training,
practicing, playing football, lifting, eating, and getting in and out of practice gear nearby nearly all of the
time), it also afforded proximity to three professionals whose input proved invaluable to Costner, Garner
and Leary—the then Browns’ GM, Mike Lombardi; Director of Legal Affairs, Megan Rogers; and at the
time Head Coach, Robert A. “Chud” Chudzinski.
Leary continues, “Shooting at the training facility, those days were great, with the Browns
football players around us and the real Browns staff in the background watching us. It was kind of crazy.
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We’d be shooting a scene and I’d look over and Browns’ Quarterback Brandon Weeden’s (who is no
longer with the team) standing there watching us shoot the scene, because he’s on his way to work out.
That stuff was just great.”
With the cast and crew every step of the way was Ivan Reitman. Jennifer Garner declares, “Ivan
does not miss a trick. He’s not absorbed in what the shot looks like, even though his shots are really well
composed and make a lot of sense. He’s actually completely absorbed in performance, and can give you
20 notes on a take without forgetting any and never having to reference a piece of paper. They just
rattles them off… and nothing is more fun for an actor than to have a director who is that engaged in
your performance.”
“Ivan has become a very good friend to me, a very interesting voice in my life,” shares Costner.
“He’s a different point of view for me, which I appreciate. As an actor, it’s wonderful to be wanted. The
writing on this matched up with my own instincts about a movie that can become a classic. I thought we
had a chance at something great, and Ivan gave us that chance. Ivan really was working on all cylinders.
He was a good director for me and for this movie. He is a good listener and we got to know each other,
and neither one of us buried our feelings. We brought them to bear and we might have had a level of
difficulty, but there was this really good give and take, and I wanted to serve his movie. We built a
relationship out of being honest. This movie is incredibly thoughtful, yet there’s that twinkle of Ivan
Reitman in it.”
“We're both two old hounds who’ve been around the block,” laughs Reitman. “It was clear that
he was comfortable with me, and that I was comfortable with him. We both had very similar takes on
what would make this movie great. He had wonderful ideas about the script, and he liked my ideas. It
was really the start of a beautiful relationship. He's an Academy Award winning director himself. He's
no one’s fool. He's strong and smart about material and what he believes is correct. But, at the same
time I didn't feel threatened. Frankly once we started working, it was very easy and a very joyful
experience.”
Reitman adds, “Movie audiences respond to Kevin. You really sense a guy who’s got common
sense, who’s got a real moral center to him. Kevin is the kind of guy you want to get behind. As a
director, I learned very early on to be nimble, because oftentimes the actor is the smartest person about
his character. I wanted to bring back the very wonderful focused character in him that people
remember from those classic movies. There’s a reason those films really worked and it’s a lot to do with
who Kevin was in those films. We had a very clean approach to his character and he did a great job. The
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thing about Costner in this movie is he's got big presentations to his war room and negotiations with
people on the telephone. That requires extraordinary focus and energy on the actor’s part.”
So concerned was Reitman about getting the best performances from his actors that the phone
conversations in Draft Day are real conversations. Joe Medjuck explains, “In a lot of Kevin’s scenes in
our film, he’s on the phone. Whenever we were filming whoever was on the other end of the line, Kevin
would show up and read all of his lines, full-on, from off-camera. He didn’t just toss them in. Once both
sides were filmed, we edited them into a split-screen image, so the audience gets to watch the speaker
and the listener at the same time… because a lot gets said when nothing is said.”
Producer Ali Bell states, “Our number one rule of moviemaking has always been do we love the
story, and how does it resonate? Aside from just being funny, which is what The Montecito Company is
mostly known for, we really want to make sure that all of our films have some sort of emotional center
to them, something that people can identify with. When you look back at Ivan’s career and his history
as a filmmaker, that’s why his movies stand the test of time…it’s that people can see a reflection of
themselves in his work.”
Producer Joe Medjuck thinks Draft Day is not just for fans of the sport. He says, “You don’t have
to know a lot about football or the draft to enjoy the movie. If you do know about those things, then
you’ll really enjoy it already. But, we make it fairly explicit how the draft works, and we make it very
clear what people do on a football team. Underneath all of that, the film is mainly a story about human
emotions. Those types of stories can play with any audience.”
“I don’t think stories about men and women are ever going to fall out of fashion,” states
Costner. “Certain things don’t seem to be in vogue, but I’m going to keep making cowboy movies, and if
I see another good sports movie, I’ll make it. But I’ll make all these movies with the idea that it can live
forever.”
Reitman says, “It's my hope that Draft Day is a movie that works not only for football fans, but
really works for people who like good movies. It doesn’t really matter whether you know anything
about football, audiences like it. Draft Day is one of those movies that does make you laugh, you get
very excited, and frankly you cry at certain points. It's very satisfying to have made a film that touches
people emotionally.”
In his signature style, Denis Leary closes, “My wife would love this movie. Also, football fans and
sports fans will love it, because it’s set in that world and it’s detailed and true. But it’s really a
relationship in a movie. It’s about these three people and their battle to achieve this goal in the course
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of one day… so it’s funny and dramatic and surprising. It’s got all of these twists and turns, not to
mention a great cast. I’d go see it. Even if I wasn’t in it, I’d still go see it.”
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ABOUT THE CAST
KEVIN COSTNER (Sonny Weaver Jr.) is a two-time Academy Award®-winning filmmaker, winning
both Best Picture and Best Director for his directorial debut Dances with Wolves, which garnered seven
total Oscars®, including a Best Actor nomination for Costner. For his work on the film, he also won the
Golden Globe® for Best Director and the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial
Achievement in Motion Pictures.
Throughout his career, Costner has varied his choices with comedy, action and dramatic roles.
He has appeared in such popular box-office hits as No Way Out, Bull Durham, Field of Dreams, The
Bodyguard and Wyatt Earp. He has also appeared in memorable roles in JFK, The Untouchables and
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, and re-teamed with his Bull Durham director Ron Shelton, for the hit
feature Tin Cup. Costner also starred in Thirteen Days, successfully collaborating again with his No Way
Out director, Roger Donaldson.
His other film credits include: The Company Men, For Love of the Game, The War, 3,000 Miles to
Graceland, Dragonfly, The Upside of Anger, Rumor Has It, The Guardian, Mr. Brooks, Swing Vote, The
New Daughter and The Postman, his second directing effort. Most recently, he was seen as Jonathan
Kent, Superman’s adoptive father, in the blockbuster Man of Steel, starring Henry Cavill, Russell Crowe
and Amy Adams; in the revival of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan franchise, opposite Chris Pine; and the spy
thriller Three Days to Kill, from director McG.
Costner last directed the box office hit and critically acclaimed film Open Range, in which he also
co-starred alongside Robert Duvall and Annette Bening.
He began his acting career in independent films, his first major motion picture being the comingof-age comedy Fandango. Costner was most recently seen on the small screen in the History Channel’s
record-setting miniseries “Hatfields & McCoys,” in which he portrayed “Devil” Anse Hatfield, the
patriarch of the famed clan, opposite Bill Paxton. Costner also served as a producer of the series, which
received 16 Emmy® Award nominations, with five wins, including Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries
or Movie for Costner. He also received the Golden Globe® and Screen Actors Guild Awards® for his
performance.
He will next be seen in writer/director Mike Bender’s drama Black and White, opposite Octavia
Spencer. In addition to starring in the film, Costner financed the picture and also serves as producer. He
will also be seen in McFarland, the true story of an underdog track team, for Disney.
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When Costner is not working on films, he sings lead vocals and plays lead guitar in his band,
Modern West, and can be seen playing venues across the country. The band recorded a collection of
songs inspired by “Hatfields & McCoys” for an album entitled “Famous for Killing Each Other,” featuring
the song “These Hills.” Their song “The Angels Came Down,” from their album “Turn it On,” was
adopted by the Gold Star Moms and Gold Star Wives organizations, which support the mothers, wives
and families of fallen soldiers.
Award winning actress JENNIFER GARNER (Ali) has enjoyed a successful career at the top of her
field in both film and television, and most recently taken on the role of producer and philanthropist.
Later this year, she can be seen opposite Steve Carell in the Disney family film Alexander and the
Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day in October 2014. The film is based on Judith Viorst’s book.
Additionally, Garner will be seen in the independent drama Imagine, starring Al Pacino, Annette Bening,
and Bobby Cannavale. The story is about an aging rock star (Al Pacino) who reconnects with his grown
son after opening a letter sent from John Lennon to his 19- year-old self. Garner will play Al Pacino’s
daughter-in-law.
She recently wrapped production on director Jason Reitman’s Men, Women and Children, along
with Emma Thompson, Adam Sandler and Dean Norris. The film is slated for release in late 2014.
Garner was recently seen opposite Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto in Focus Feature’s
award winning film Dallas Buyers Club, which was directed by independent award-winning director JeanMarc Vallee. The film is a true story based on the life of Ron Woodroof (Matthew McConaughey) who
lived his life on the edge during the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the 1980’s. Garner and the film received a
Broadcast Film Critics Association Award in the Best Motion Picture category, a Screen Actors Guild
Awards® nomination for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture, as well as an Academy
Award® nomination in the Best Motion Picture category.
In addition to her more recent roles, Garner also starred opposite Joel Edgerton in the Disney
fantasy film The Odd Life of Timothy Green. Garner was honored as Female Star of the Year at the 2012
Cinema Con awards ceremony for her role in the film. She also starred opposite Jason Bateman and
Ellen Page in Fox Searchlight’s award winning feature Juno. She was praised for her performance as a
barren woman whose marriage falls apart in the midst of her mission to adopt a teenager’s unborn
child. Juno won an abundance of awards including a Broadcast Film Critics Association and Independent
Spirit Award® for Best Comedy and Best Feature Film respectively.
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In 2005, Garner started her own production company with her personal assistant of many years,
Juliana Janes. The company, Vandalia Films, is named after the original name for the state of West
Virginia, where Garner is from. Vandalia Films recently signed an overall television production deal with
Warner Brothers. They produced the blacklisted screenplay Butter with the Weinstein Company which
was released in 2012. Other projects on the horizon and in development include a Lifetime movie
titled Hannah’s Road , that takes place in rural West Virginia. They have also recently optioned the rights
to the book The Aviator's Wife, by Melanie Benjamin, which tells the story of Anne Morrow Lindbergh
and the dizzying highs and devastating lows of her marriage to famous aviator Charles Lindbergh.
On the small screen, Garner was honored with numerous acting awards including a Golden
Globe®, Screen Actors Guild Award®, and People’s Choice Award for her memorable portrayal of CIA
double-agent Sydney Bristow on the JJ Abrams' television show “Alias.” Over the course of the show’s
five-season run, Garner was nominated for four Emmy® awards, four Golden Globes® and two Screen
Actors Guild Awards®.
Garner received rave reviews for her revival of “Roxanne” in the Broadway production of Cyrano
de Bergerac opposite Kevin Kline. The New York Times said, “Jennifer Garner has impeccable timing.
She makes Roxanne a girl worth pining over.”
Her impressive resume of film credits include: Weinstein Company’s Butter, Warner Bros.’
Arthur, Valentine’s Day, The Invention of Lying, Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, Universal Pictures The
Kingdom, Revolution Studios’ smash hit 13 Going On 30, Twentieth Century Fox’s blockbuster hit
Daredevil and Pearl Harbor.
Currently serving as a brand ambassador for Neutrogena, where she is featured in national
television and print campaigns. For the past five years, Garner has also held the position of Artist
Ambassador with Save the Children’s US Programs. As an Artist Ambassador, Garner brought Save the
Children’s early childhood development and literacy programs to her home state, West Virginia, where
more than a quarter of children live below the poverty line. She has advocated on Capitol Hill on behalf
of the organization and traveled to California’s Central Valley, Kentucky and West Virginia to see the
effects of poverty first hand. Garner recently joined the global non-profit's board of trustees, deepening
her commitment to issues affecting children in America and around the world. Committed to a six-year
term as one of 30 members of the organization's board, Garner joins the likes of former ABC News
president David Westin, former chairman of the Xerox Corporation Anne Mulcahy and ABC News
political commentator Cokie Roberts.
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Garner was born in Houston, Texas, raised in Charleston, West Virginia, and currently resides in
Los Angeles with her family.
DENIS LEARY (Coach Penn) is a five-time loser at the Academy Of Television Arts And Sciences’
annual Emmy® Awards. Most recently he lost in the category of Best Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or
Movie for his role as Michael Whouley in HBO’s Recount. Denis has previously lost four times for Best
Actor in a Drama and once for Best Writing in a Drama -- Emmy® nominations emanating from his work
on FX’s critically acclaimed “Rescue Me.” He was also nominated for a Best Actor Golden Globe® by the
Hollywood Foreign Press Association for the drama, which follows New York City firefighters. Once
again - he lost.
Leary hopes to one day get nominated for – and more than likely not win – an Oscar®,
GRAMMY®, and Tony Award®. In his long and storied entertainment career Denis has also never won
The Stanley Cup, The Nobel Peace Prize, or an argument with his wife.
FRANK LANGELLA (Anthony Molina) has long been considered among America’s greatest stage
and film actors. His career is a model of quality and longevity, excelling in range, power and versatility.
In 2014 he will star in no less than six films. In addition to Draft Day, there are: Olivier Dahan’s
Grace of Monaco, opposite Nicole Kidman; The Prophet, as the voice of Pasha; Parts Per Billion, opposite
Gena Rowlands; 5 to 7, opposite Glenn Close; and the new Muppets Most Wanted, movie opposite Miss
Piggy and Kermit the Frog. He was most recently seen in HBO’s Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight,
opposite Christopher Plummer, directed by Stephen Frears. Prior to that his film Robot & Frank was
award-winning at Sundance, garnering excellent reviews with critics and public alike; and in 2011 he
starred on Broadway in Terence Rattigan’s “Man and Boy,” earning him his 6th Tony® nomination.
Langella made his film debut in 1970 in Diary of a Mad Housewife, and later that year in the
iconic Mel Brooks comedy The Twelve Chairs. He made his Broadway debut in 1974 in Edward Albee’s
“Seascape,” earning him the first of his three Tony Awards®. In 1977, he starred in the title role of a
Broadway revival of “Dracula,” and his performance turned the production into an unexpected hit. He
reprised his role for the film version of Dracula, released in 1979.
In the 1990s, he scored a breakthrough screen role in Ivan Reitman’s comedy Dave, followed by
Adrian Lyne’s Lolita and Roman Polanski’s The Ninth Gate, while still remaining a frequent and
distinguished presence in the New York theatrical community.
He has continued to work constantly on Broadway, winning his second Tony® for “Fortune’s
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Fool” in 2003, and his third for “Frost/Nixon” in 2007. On film in 2005, he played William S. Paley in
George Clooney’s historical docudrama Good Night and Good Luck, and then the Daily Planet’s editor
Perry White in the 2006 Superman Returns, directed by Bryan Singer.
In 2007, Langella earned an Independent Spirit Award® nomination for his starring role in
Starting Out in the Evening. In the 2008 film version of Frost/Nixon, he was honored with a Best Actor
Academy Award® nomination, as well as Golden Globe® and SAG Awards® nominations, for his portrayal
of disgraced former president Richard Nixon in Ron Howard’s big-screen adaptation of the Broadway
play. He was also seen in Oliver Stone’s Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps.
He was inducted into the Theatre Hall of Fame in 2003. In addition to the awards already
mentioned, Langella has been honored with well over two dozen acting nominations and wins, including
Tonys®, Oscars®, Emmys®, Golden Globes®, Cable ACE Awards, Obies, and various critics’ awards.
Langella recently returned to the stage in the title role of “King Lear” at the Chichester Shakespeare
Festival in England, and then at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York.
SAM ELLIOTT (Coach Moore)’s iconic career all began with a bit part in the classic film Butch
Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. His resonant drawl is instantly recognizable, with a voice that fuels
international campaigns such as Dodge Ram and Coors.
The versatile actor rose to stardom playing the lead of the Paramount Pictures’ cult classic
Lifeguard. Some of his most memorable roles include playing “Virgil Earp” in Tombstone, “The Stranger”
in The Big Lebowski, “Lee Scorseby” in New Line Cinema’s fantasy adventure The Golden Compass,
“General Ross” in Ang Lee’s Hulk, and “Caretaker” in the hit film Ghost Rider opposite Nicholas Cage.
His upcoming films include the animated feature Tibetan Rock Dog directed by Ash Brannon and
opposite Luke Wilson, Mae Whitman, and J.K. Simmons, Grandma, directed by Paul Weitz and opposite
Lily Tomlin, and I’ll See You in My Dreams, directed by Brett Haley and opposite Blythe Danner.
Among his countless film credits include The Company You Keep, We Were Soldiers, The
Contender, The Hi-Lo Country, Did You Hear about the Morgans?, Barnyard , Off the Map, Gettysburg,
Rush, Prancer, Fatal Beauty, Mask, Up in the Air, and Thank You for Smoking.
On television, Sam currently recurs on the hit series “Parks and Recreation.” Elliott was
nominated for an Emmy® and a Golden Globe® for his role in “Buffalo Girls.” Other television credits
include “Fail Safe,” “You Know My Name,” which was a movie for TNT that won the first Golden Boot
“Best of the West” Award, the miniseries “Murder in Texas,” “Gone to Texas,” “The Sam Houston Story,”
“The Yellow Rose” and “Fugitive Nights.”
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SEAN COMBS (Chris Crawford) made his Broadway debut as Walter Lee Younger in the classic Lorraine
Hansberry play “A Raisin in the Sun.” In 2008, Combs reprised the role (and served as an executive
producer) for ABC’s televised adaptation, which went on to be nominated for three Emmy® Awards. For
his role in the telefilm, Combs won an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie,
Mini-Series or Dramatic Special.
He made his professional acting debut in the feature film Made. Combs then starred as
Lawrence Musgrove, opposite Halle Berry, in Monster’s Ball, for which he received much critical acclaim.
In 2010, he co-starred alongside Russell Brand and Jonah Hill in the Judd Apatow comedy Get Him to the
Greek, which earned him rave reviews as “the breakout star.” Combs continues to make his mark both
on and off screen. He recently served as executive producer of the critically acclaimed documentary
Undefeated, which won the Academy Award® for Best Documentary Feature.
Combs is the CEO and founder of Bad Boy Worldwide Entertainment Group, a multifaceted
entertainment powerhouse. He was recently declared “One of the Most Influential Businessmen in the
World” by Time magazine and CNN. Combs, 44, oversees one of the world’s preeminent urban
entertainment companies, encompassing a broad range of businesses including recording, music
publishing, artist management, television and film production, recording facility, apparel, fragrance, and
restaurants. He is a GRAMMY® Award-winning music producer who counts Aretha Franklin, Sting,
Jennifer Lopez, Mary J. Blige, and Janet Jackson among the many artists with whom he has worked.
Combs has also released four multiplatinum albums and won his third GRAMMY® Award for the No. 1
song “Shake Ya Tailfeather” from the “Bad Boys II” soundtrack. Combs served as co-executive producer
on Mastermind, the highly awaited album from rap superstar Rick Ross this year.
Since the inception of his clothing line Sean John, Combs has been praised for his innovative and
sexy approach to fashion. His efforts were recognized in 2004 when he received the prestigious Perry
Ellis Menswear Designer of the Year Award from the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA).
Additionally, Combs launched his first fragrance, Unforgivable, in 2006 with cosmetics giant
Estée Lauder, which quickly became the number one-selling fragrance across America. He then
launched the fragrances Unforgivable Woman in 2007 and I Am King in 2008, which garnered him a
Fragrance Foundation FiFi Award. In 2013, Combs launched REVOLT, the multi-genre, multi-platform
music network created using social media.
Combs is a proud father to sons Justin, Christian, Quincy, daughter Chance and twin girls D’Lila
Star and Jesse James.
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Since retiring from the NFL, TERRY CREWS (Earl Jennings) has traded in his helmet and cleats to
pursue an acting career while also becoming the ultimate family man and fitness enthusiast. Over the
past few years, Crews has been one of those actors you see almost everywhere; whether he’s the
overworked dad on “Everybody Hates Chris,” a tough guy in The Expendables series, the loveable
goofball in White Chicks, Will McAvoy’s bodyguard in “The Newsroom,” or randy congressman Herbert
Love in “Arrested Development,” Crews has proven that he’s adept at both drama and comedy. He’s
currently a series regular on FOX’s Golden Globe® award winning comedy series “Brooklyn Nine-Nine”
alongside Andy Samberg and Andre Brauger as Sgt. Terry Jeffords, whose ripped exterior belies a
sensitive and beleaguered interior.
This year Crews has a number of films, including Tyler Perry’s Single Mom’s Club, Blended, with
Adam Sandler, as well as reprising his role in the third installment of The Expendables franchise. Not
one to limit himself, Crews will also add author to his resume this year with the release of his first book
Manhood, in May.
Born in Flint, Michigan, Crews attended Flint Southwestern Academy. He earned an Art
Excellence Scholarship to attend the Interlochen Center for the Arts and then Western Michigan
University. While completing his studies as an art major, Crews was a key member of the WMU football
team, earning all-conference honors as a defensive end. Crews was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams in
the 1991 NFL Draft. He carved out a career that lasted six seasons, including stints with the Rams, San
Diego Chargers, Washington Redskins, and Philadelphia Eagles.
Crews lives in Los Angeles with his wife of nearly 25 years, Rebecca. They have five children.
ELLEN BURSTYN’s (Barb Weaver) illustrious fifty-seven year acting career encompasses stage,
film, and television.
In 1975 she became only the third woman in history to win both the Tony Award® and the
Academy Award® in the same year, for her work in Bernard Slade’s “Same Time, Next Year” on
Broadway, and in Martin Scorsese’s “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore,” for which she also received a
Golden Globe® nomination and a BAFTA for Best Actress.
Burstyn has been nominated for an Academy Award® five other times for The Last Picture Show
(1972), The Exorcist (1974), Same Time, Next Year(1979), Resurrection (1981), and Requiem for a
Dream(2000). She became a triple crown winner when she won her first Emmy® for a guest appearance
in “Law & Order: SVU” (2009), to add to her Oscar and Tony. She also recently won an Emmy® for USA's
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short-run series "Political Animals".
Her many theater credits include the Broadway production of “84 Charring Cross Road” (1982),
the acclaimed one-woman play “Shirley Valentine” (1989), as well as “Shimada” (1992), and “Sacrilege”
(1995). Burstyn starred off-Broadway with Burgess Meredith in “Park Your Car in Harvard Yard” (1985).
In the mid-1990s, she starred in regional productions of Horton Foote’s “The Trip to Bountiful,” “Death
of Papa,” and Eugene O’Neill’s “Long Day’s Journey Into Night” at Houston’s Alley Theatre and at
Hartford Stage in Connecticut. In 2008, she received rave reviews in Stephen Adley Guirgis’ new play
“The Little Flower of East Orange,” directed by Philip Seymour Hoffman at The Public Theater in New
York. She also performed in London’s West End in Lillian Hellman’s “The Children’s Hour,” directed by
Ian Rickson and co-starring Keira Knightley and Elisabeth Moss.
Burstyn has worked with some of film’s most visionary directors from Martin Scorsese to Darren
Aronofsky. She has appeared in films such as: Goodbye, Charlie (1964), Pit Stop (1969), Tropic of Cancer
(1970), Alex in Wonderland (1970), The Last Picture Show (1971), The King of Marvin Gardens (1972),
The Exorcist (1973), Harry and Tonto (1974), Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore (1974), Providence(1977),
A Dream of Passion (1978), Same Time, Next Year (1978), Resurrection (1980), Silence of the North
(1981), The Ambassador (1984), Twice in a Lifetime (1985), Hanna’s War (1988), Dying Young (1991),
Grand Isle (1991), The Cemetery Club (1993), The Color of Evening (1994), When a Man Loves a Woman
(1994), Roommates (1995), The Baby-Sitters Club (1995), How to Make an American Quilt (1995), The
Spitfire Grill (1996), Deceiver (1997), You Can Thank Me Later (1998), Playing By Heart (1998), Walking
Across Egypt (1999), The Yards (2000), Requiem for a Dream (2000), Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya
Sisterhood (2002), The Elephant King (2006), The Wicker Man (2006), The Fountain (2006), The Stone
Angel (2007) for which she won the Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actress in Canada, Oliver
Stone’s W (2008), The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond (2008), According to Greta (2008), The Mighty Macs
(2008), Lovely, Still (2008), Horton Foote’s final screenplay Main Street (2009), Someday This Pain Will
Be Useful to You (2010), and Sam Levinson’s Another Happy Day (2010).
In television, Burstyn won her first Emmy® Award for her guest appearance on “Law & Order:
SVU” (2009), and received Emmy® nominations for her title role in “The People vs. Jean Harris” (1981),
her starring role in “Pack of Lies” (1987) a Hallmark Hall of Fame television production, and for HBO’s
“Big Love” (2008).
She has appeared in many other television movies including: “Surviving” (1985), “Into Thin Air”
(1985), “Something in Common” (1986), “When You Remember Me” (1990), “Getting Gotti” (1994), “My
Brother’s Keeper” (1995), “Timepiece” (1996), “Within These Walls” (2001), “The Five People You Meet
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in Heaven” (2004), “Our Fathers” (2005), Mitch Albom’s “For One More Day” (2007), and “Flowers in the
Attic” (2014). She has also starred in three television series: “The Ellen Burstyn Show” (1986), “That’s
Life” (2002-2003), and “The Book of Daniel” (2006).
Burstyn was the first woman elected president of Actors Equity Association (1982-85), and
served as the Artistic Director of the famed Actors Studio, where she studied with the late Lee Strasberg.
She continues to be active there as co-president with Al Pacino and Harvey Keitel, and again is serving as
the Artistic Director.
Academically, Burstyn holds four honorary doctorates, one in Fine Arts from the School of Visual
Arts, a Doctor of Humane Letters from Dowling College, a doctorate from The New School for Social
Research, and a doctorate from Pace University. She lectures throughout the country on a wide range
of topics, and became a national best-selling author with her memoir Lessons in Becoming Myself
(2006), published by Riverhead Press.
A native of South Carolina, CHADWICK BOSEMAN (Vontae Mack) graduated from Howard
University and attended the British American Dramatic Academy at Oxford, after which he began his
career as a playwright, director, and actor. He wrote “Deep Azure,” which was nominated for a Jeff
Award for Best New Play and is published in the Hip Hop Theater Anthology Say Word; “Hieroglyphic
Graffiti,” which was produced at the National Black Theatre Festival and the Hip Hop Theatre Festival;
and co-wrote “Rhyme Deferred,” which appears in the Hip Hop Theatre Anthology “The Fire this Time.”
Boseman’s theater directing credits include: “Dutchman,” “Wine in the Wilderness,” “Indian
Summer,” “Spear in the Sun,” “Colored Museum,” and “Six Hits.” For the screen he wrote, directed and
executive-produced the short film “Blood Over a Broken Pawn.”
His theater acting credits include “Romeo and Juliet,” “Macbeth,” “Breathe,” “Learning Curve,”
“Willie’s Cut and Shine,” “Rhyme Deferred,” “Bootleg Blues,” “Zooman and the Sign,” and “Urban
Transitions,” for which he won an AUDELECO Award for Best Supporting Actor.
Boseman made his feature film debut in Gary Fleders drama The Express, playing football great
Floyd Little. He more recently starred in the independent psychological post-war drama The Kill Hole.
Boseman starred as the lead of Warner Bros. 42, where he received strong reviews for his portrayal of
the legendary Jackie Robinson. The film tells of Robinson’s history-making signing with the Brooklyn
Dodgers under the guidance of team executive Branch Rickey, played by Harrison Ford.
Later this year, he will star as James Brown in Universal’s Get on Up. The biopic directed by Tate
Taylor (The Help) chronicles James Brown’s rise from extreme poverty to become one of the most
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influential musicians in history and also stars Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer and Dan Akyroyd.
Boseman is currently in production for Summit Entertainment’s period epic Gods of Egypt, from
director Alex Proyas. The action-adventure, in which he portrays Thoth, the god of wisdom, is set for
release in February 2016.
ROSANNA ARQUETTE (Angie) was born in New York City to a show business family. She was the
first-born child of five in the third generation of the Arquette acting clan. Her grandfather Cliff Arquette
played Charley Weaver on “The Jack Paar Show” and was a regular on the original “Hollywood Squares.”
Her father, character actor Lewis Arquette, was well known as J.D. Pickett on “The Waltons.” Her
siblings Patricia Arquette, David Arquette, Alexis Arquette, and Richmond Arquette all followed her into
the family tradition as accomplished working actors.
Arquette began acting as a child while growing up in a bohemian atmosphere of gypsy-like travel
and communes. Her mother Mardi was a poet, political activist, and therapist who deeply influenced
her compassionate world-view.
She started working professionally as a teenager and has never stopped. Throughout Arquette’s
career she has worked with some of Hollywood and Independent Cinema’s most important and
influential directors including, Blake Edwards (S.O.B.), John Sayles (Baby It’s You), Lawrence Kasden
(Silverado), Martin Scorsese (After Hours, New York Stories), Luc Besson (The Big Blue), Quentin
Tarantino (Pulp Fiction), David Cronenberg (Crash), Vincent Gallo (Buffalo 66) and Alison Anders (Sugar
Town). She has appeared in over 70 films.
Arquette won the BAFTA for Best Supporting Actress for her star-making performance opposite
Madonna in Susan Seidleman’s 1985 hit Desperately Seeking Susan. She was nominated for an Emmy®
for her strong performance in the television adaptation of Norman Mailer’s “The Executioner’s Song,”
opposite Tommy Lee Jones. Arquette also starred in the acclaimed TV movie adaptations of “Song of the
Morning Star,” and “Johnny Belinda.”
Her other film credits include: the Martin Scorsese films After Hours and New York Stories, The
Linguini Incident, Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction and David Cronenberg’s Crash. She also had a starring
role in the independent crime drama Hell’s Kitchen, and then moved on to a supporting role in the hit
comedy The Whole Nine Yards, and Big Bad Love.
She starred in the ABC series “What About Brian” from executive producers J.J. Abrams and
Dana Stevens. Arquette has guest starred in numerous television series such as “Will & Grace”, “The
Practice”, “Law and Order: Criminal Intent”, “The L Word”, “Royal Pains,” HBO’s Emmy® winning show
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“Girls,” and Showtime’s 2013 hit “Ray Donovan.” She has also hosted “Saturday Night Live” and has
appeared on the cover of many magazines throughout the years.
Her vast experience in the world of film and television has inspired her to explore and expand
her talent as a filmmaker into the realm of directing and producing with two highly acclaimed
documentaries, 2002’s Searching for Debra Winger, and 2005’s All We Are Saying. She is currently
developing projects for both television and film, including a TV series with Jane Fonda and her narrative
film directorial debut, through her company, Flower Child Productions.
Arquette is a busy actress and filmmaker, whose passion for her work is matched only by her
passion for her daughter Zoe Bleu Sidel, her family, and her work as a breast cancer awareness
advocate.
ARIAN FOSTER (Ray Jennings) was named the “most interesting man in the NFL,” by the
Sporting News, and hailed as “The NFL’s Renaissance Man,” by “CBS This Morning.” He also is a threetime Pro Bowler and two-time All Pro star running back for the Houston Texans.
Foster was voted by NFL Network as No. 8 on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2013, and is also the
3rd fastest player in NFL history to reach 5,000 yard from scrimmage. Off the field, Foster is a father,
husband, artist, poet, health warrior, fashion enthusiast and thinker; he majored in philosophy at the
University of Tennessee.
Philanthropy is also huge part of Foster’s life; he is committed to fighting childhood obesity,
improving financial literacy and is an activist for the fair treatment of NCAA student athletes. He has
also teamed up with the Boys and Girls Club of America and participates as an ambassador for the NFL’s
Crucial Catch program to raise awareness of breast cancer.
He is a spokesman for Toyota, Health Warrior, LearnVest, Verizon, Walkmore, EA Sports, and
Under Armour to name a few, and is the first athlete to appear on the cover of Houston Magazine.
In 2013, Foster began his acting career with a cameo performance on CBS’s “Hawaii Five-0.”
Draft Day marks his feature film debut. On the field or off, Foster is a trailblazer whose unique
personality, drive, and humility continues to inspire.
A Santa Monica native and Dartmouth College graduate, JOSH PENCE (Bo Callahan) began his
career under famed New York acting teacher Sheila Gray and made his feature film debut in Robert
DeNiro’s The Good Shepherd. Returning to Los Angeles in 2007, Pence appeared in Ian McCrudden’s The
Things We Carry, before landing the coveted role of Tyler WInklevoss in the Oscar®-winning David
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Fincher drama The Social Network.
Pence’s recent credits have included Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises (playing the
young Ra’s Al Ghul), Peter Berg’s Battleship, Josh Schwartz’s Fun Size, and Ruben Fleischer’s Gangster
Squad, with Sean Penn, Nick Nolte, and Ryan Gosling.
He can next be seen in the indie dramas In Lieu of Flowers and Victor.
TIMOTHY SIMONS (Marx) currently stars as Jonah Ryan in HBO’s critically acclaimed series,
“Veep,” which returns for its fourth season on April 6.
Other upcoming film credits include: Paul Thomas Anderson’s Inherent Vice, Evan Goldberg and
Seth Rogen’s The Interview, Bob Castrone’s Flock of Dudes, and Aron Gaudet and Gita Pullapilly’s
Beneath the Harvest Sky.
Simons previously spent six years in Chicago working in independent theatre before moving to
Los Angeles.
One of today’s biggest TV and film stars, TOM WELLING (Brian Drew) is best known for his
award-winning portrayal of Clark Kent on the CW’s hit show “Smallville.” Welling not only starred as the
heroic Superman, he also worked as an executive producer and director. He also served as executive
producer on the CW’s hit “Hellcats.”
Welling made his feature film debut opposite Steve Martin and Bonnie Hunt in the 2003 comedy
Cheaper by the Dozen. He was also seen in the 2005 film The Fog, and in Cheaper by the Dozen 2, which
hit theaters in 2006.
A native of Michigan, Welling moved to Los Angeles shortly after high school, where he received
his first break on the CBS drama “Judging Amy.” Shortly after, he was cast in the lead role on the WB”s
“Smallville.” In his first season, Welling was named one of People magazine’s “Breakthrough Stars of
2001.” He has also received various awards and nominations, including four Saturn Award nominations
for “Best Actor in a Television Series” and three Teen Choice Award nominations. Welling won his first
Teen Choice Award in 2001 and returned as the fan favorite this past year for Choice TV Male Breakout
Star.
Welling recently appeared in the feature film Parkland.
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ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS
IVAN REITMAN (Director/Producer) has been the creative force behind films beloved by
audiences around the world – from raucous comedies like Animal House, Stripes, and Ghostbusters, to
more sophisticated delights like Dave, Six Days Seven Nights, and Twins.
The career that has brought about so many laughs began in Canada, where his family emigrated
from Czechoslovakia when he was four-years-old. Reitman studied music at McMaster University, but
soon turned his talents to film and theater.
Shortly after graduation, Reitman delved into film production – first with the extremely lowbudget horror comedy Cannibal Girls, starring Canada’s Eugene Levy and Andrea Martin, followed by the
live television show “Greed,” with Dan Aykroyd as its announcer. Reitman then headed to New York
City and produced the Broadway hit “The Magic Show,” starring McMaster friend Doug Henning. He
continued producing for the stage with the off-Broadway hit “The National Lampoon Show,” where he
brought together for the first time the then-unknown John Belushi, Gilda Radner, Bill Murray, Harold
Ramis, and Joe Flaherty. Reitman returned to Broadway to produce and direct the musical “Merlin,”
earning him Tony® nominations for directing and producing. While in New York, Reitman reapplied his
talents to filmmaking when he joined forces with National Lampoon and brought us the groundbreaking
sensation Animal House. Following the success of that film, Reitman returned home to Canada to direct
Meatballs, still considered one the most successful films ever made in Canada.
The string of hits continued with Stripes and the Ghostbusters series, which teamed Bill Murray
with Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis; Dave, starring Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver; Legal Eagles,
starring Robert Redford and Debra Winger; Six Days Seven Nights, with Harrison Ford and Anne Heche;
Evolution, starring David Duchovny and Julianne Moore; and a series of films that revealed an untapped
comic persona for action hero Arnold Schwarzenegger: Twins, Junior, (both co-starring Danny DeVito)
and Kindergarten Cop.
Reitman’s list of producing credits is equally extensive. He produced the family features
Beethoven and Beethoven’s 2nd, as well as the HBO telefilm The Late Shift, which received seven Emmy®
nominations. Other producing endeavors include Heavy Metal, Howard Stern’s Private Parts, the
animation/live action film Space Jam (which teamed Michael Jordan with the Looney Toons characters),
and the teen comedy hits Road Trip, Eurotrip, and Old School, starring Will Ferrell, Vince Vaughn and
Luke Wilson.
In 1984, Reitman was honored as Director of the Year by the National Association of Theater
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Owners and the next year received a Special Achievement Award at the Canadian Genie awards. In
1979, and again in 1989, for the films Animal House and Twins, Reitman was honored with the People’s
Choice Award. In November of 1994, Reitman became the third director honored by Variety magazine
in a special “Billion Dollar Director” issue. At the end of 2000, Reitman’s films Animal House and
Ghostbusters were honored as two of this past century’s funniest movies by the American Film Institute.
He currently heads The Montecito Picture Company, a film and television production company, with
partner Tom Pollock.
Recently Ivan Reitman completed: the family hit Hotel For Dogs, The Uninvited, I Love You Man,
Post Grad, Chloe, and the Oscar®-nominated Up In the Air, starring George Clooney and directed by his
son Jason Reitman. In 2011, he directed the comedy hit No Strings Attached, starring Natalie Portman
and Ashton Kutcher. In 2012, he produced the wry Hitchcock, starring Anthony Hopkins and Helen
Mirren.
Reitman has been married to former Quebec film actress Genevieve Robert for more than 40
years. Together, they have three children and live in Santa Barbara, California.
RAJIV JOSEPH’s (Screenwriter) stage plays include “Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo” (a 2010
finalist for the Pulitzer Prize), “Gruesome Playground Injuries,” “Animals Out of Paper,” “The North
Pool,” and “The Lake Effect.” He is the book-writer and co-lyricist for the new Peter Pan musical “Fly,”
which premiered this summer at the Dallas Theater Center in Dallas, Texas.
He also wrote for the Showtime series “Nurse Jackie” for the third and fourth seasons. Joseph
received his B.A. in creative writing from Miami University, and his M.F.A. in playwriting from NYU’s
Tisch School of the Arts. He served for three years in the Peace Corps in Senegal, West Africa.
Joseph and writing partner Scott Rothman have also collaborated on a re-write of the script “Big
in China” for Reitman’s Montecito Picture Company.
SCOTT ROTHMAN (Screenwriter) is a screenwriter living in the suburbs of New York City with
his wife and two children. He has sold scripts to Warner Bros., Paramount, Sony, and New Line Cinema.
Rothman and Joseph have been hired by Warner Bros. to adapt the hit German film Kokowaah, with
Bradley Cooper’s company, 22nd and Indiana, producing. The duo was hired by Paramount to rewrite Big In China for Ivan Reitman. Rothman is also currently rewriting his comedy script It's On for
Gulfstream Pictures.
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Rothman is a graduate of Colby College in Maine, and received an M.F.A. in dramatic writing
from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts (where he met his writing partner, Rajiv Joseph). His humor writing
has appeared in various publications, including The New Yorker, GQ, Maxim, and McSweeney’s.
ALI BELL (Producer) is the President of Development/Production for Ivan Reitman’s production
banner, The Montecito Picture Company, and most recently served as executive producer on Hitchcock,
starring Anthony Hopkins and Helen Mirren. Previously at The Montecito Picture Company, Bell has
served as co-producer on No Strings Attached, and associate producer on Chloe and Up in the Air.
Prior to joining The Montecito Picture Company, Bell was Director of Development for David
Heyman’s production banner Heyday Films, under which he produced television and film in London and
the United States. Heyday Films is most well known for producing the Harry Potter franchise.
Prior to joining Heyday Films, Bell was an executive at Nickelodeon Movies. Bell contributed to
the development and production of the company’s slate of projects, including Spongebob Squarepants:
The Movie, Nacho Libre, and Lemony Snickett’s: A Series of Unfortunate Events.
Before becoming a member of the creative team, Bell worked as a member of the marketing
team for Nickelodeon Movies, overseeing everything from the inception to execution of on-air
campaigns, print campaigns, online, publicity, consumer product tie-ins, and brand strategy – including
the Oscar® campaign for Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, which was nominated during the year of
Academy’s inaugural Best Animated Feature Category.
Before joining Nickelodeon, Bell worked for Paramount Pictures as marketing coordinator for
their 2000 Academy campaign that included Curtis Hanson’s Wonder Boys. Her first job out of school
was as Paramount’s A.C. Lyles Intern, which gave her the opportunity to work as a producer’s assistant
at “Entertainment Tonight,” a post-production PA on the feature film Bless the Child, and as an assistant
for the Paramount marketing department.
For the past few years Bell has served on the Dean’s Advisory Board of the Florida State
University Film School, as a mentor/advisor for the Nantucket Film Festival’s Screenwriter Colony, and as
a judge for the Austin Film Festival. In 2008 Bell was spotlighted by Hollywood Reporter as one of their
seven film executives in their “Next Generation” issue.
Bell graduated from Florida State University in 1999 with a B.F.A. from the film school.
JOE MEDJUCK (Producer) was born in Fredericton, New Brunswick, in 1943. He received his B.A.
from McGill University and his Masters and PhD from the University of Toronto where he taught for 12
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years and founded the Cinema Studies Program before moving to Los Angeles in 1980. While teaching
at the University of Toronto, Medjuck also worked as a journalist/editor for the film magazine Take One,
Canadian Forum, The London Times Literary Supplement, and The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
He is one of the founders of The Criterion Collection.
His producing credits include the films: Stripes, Heavy Metal, Ghostbusters, Legal Eagles, Twins,
Ghostbusters II, Beethoven, Beethoven’s 2nd, Dave, Junior, Commandments, Father’s Day, Howard Stern’s
Private Parts, Space Jam, Six Days Seven Nights, Road Trip, Evolution, Killing Me Softly, Old School,
Eurotrip, Trailer Park Boys: The Movie, Disturbia, Up In the Air, Chloe, No Strings Attached, and
Hitchcock. In television his producing credits include the cartoon shows “The Real Ghostbusters,”
“Beethoven,” and “Mummies Alive,” as well as the Emmy nominated HBO film, The Late Shift.
Medjuck lives in Montecito, California.
TOM POLLOCK (Executive Producer) served as Vice Chairman of MCA, Inc. from July 1995 to
March 1996. He previously served as Executive Vice President of MCA and Chairman of its Motion
Picture Group, Universal Pictures from September 1986 to July 1995. He was also a member of the
Board of Directors of MCA, Inc. and Cineplex-Odeon Corporation.
One of the most highly-regarded and experienced attorneys in the entertainment field, he was
previously the Senior Partner of Pollock, Bloom and Dekom. The firm (now Bloom, Hergot, Diemer and
Cook, LLP) represents leading producers, directors, writers, and actors.
Pollock joined MCA on September 18, 1986. During his tenure as Chairman of the Motion
Picture Group, Universal released over 200 films that grossed in excess of $10 billion worldwide,
including Jurassic Park (the then highest-grossing Universal film of all time), Parenthood, Cape Fear,
Twins, The Flintstones, Kindergarten Cop, Back to the Future 2, Back to the Future 3, Casper,
Waterworld, Backdraft, Beethoven, Beethoven’s 2nd, Do the Right Thing, Fried Green Tomatoes, Sneakers
and Lorenzo’s Oil.
Also during this time, Universal had seven Academy Award® Best Picture nominations, including
Schindler’s List, which won the Academy Award® for Best Picture in 1993. Other Best Picture nominees
include Field of Dreams, Born on the Fourth of July, Scent of a Woman, In the Name of the Father, Apollo
13, and Babe.
Pollock was also responsible for bringing numerous creative talents to the studio, including Ivan
Reitman, Ron Howard and Brian Grazer of Imagine Entertainment, Martin Scorsese, Spike Lee, George
Miller, Jon Avnet, Martin Brest, Rob Cohen, Phil Alden Robinson, Jim Sheridan, James Cameron, and
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Larry Gordon.
He played a key role in the creation of United Cinemas International (UCI), a joint venture with
Paramount Pictures, which has become the largest exhibitor outside North America, with nearly 700
multiplex screens. Pollock also formed Gramercy Pictures with Polygram in 1992.
During his tenure as Vice Chairman, Pollock forged MCA’s alliance with DreamWorks SKG and
the interactive arcade venture GameWorks among Sega, DreamWorks, and MCA.
In 1998 Pollock, together with director/producer Ivan Reitman, set up The Montecito Picture
Company, which has produced Road Trip (2000), Old School (2003), Disturbia (2007), the Academy
Award® Best Picture nominee Up In the Air (2009), Chloe (2010), and No Strings Attached (2011). He
most recently produced Hitchcock, starring Anthony Hopkins and Helen Mirren.
In 2006, Pollock, together with director/producer Ivan Reitman, created Cold Spring Pictures
with Merrill Lynch and other financial partners, which co-finances pictures produced by The Montecito
Picture Company.
Pollock was born April 10, 1943, in Los Angeles, California. He graduated with a B.A. from
Stanford University in 1964, and received a J.D. from Columbia University in 1967.
He is a member of the California Bar Association; the former Chairman of the Board of Trustees
of the American Film Institute; a trustee of the American Museum of the Moving Image; Adjunct
Professor of Film, University of California at Santa Barbara; and a former trustee of the Los Angeles
Music Center. Pollock has three children: Alexandra, Allegra and Luke.
MICHAEL BEUGG (Executive Producer) has served as producer, executive producer, or line
producer on more than 35 feature films, including a long-standing affiliation with filmmaker Jason
Reitman, having most recently served as executive producer on the films, Labor Day, starring Kate
Winslet and Josh Brolin, and on Pale Blue Dot, starring Adam Sandler, Jennifer Garner, and Rosemarie
DeWitt.
The 2009 Paramount release Up In the Air, starring George Clooney, Vera Farmiga and Anna
Kendrick, written and directed by Jason Reitman and produced by Ivan Reitman, received six Oscar®
nominations, including for Best Picture, and also was nominated for Best Picture by the Producers Guild
and the Golden Globes® (HFPA). The film received nominations from the Directors Guild, the Screen
Actors Guild, the Editors Guild, the Art Directors Guild, and the Costume Designers Guild. The
screenplay, adapted from Walter Kirn’s novel of the same name, won awards from the Writers Guild of
America, the Golden Globes®, and BAFTA, among others.
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Beugg’s previous collaboration with Jason Reitman, Thank You for Smoking, a satirical comedy
set in the world of tobacco lobbyists, is adapted from Christopher Buckley’s novel. The film premiered
in the fall of 2005 at the Toronto Film Festival, and it stars Aaron Eckhart, Robert Duvall, and William H.
Macy. The film was acquired by Fox Searchlight, and it received nominations for Best Picture by the
Golden Globes®, Best Screenplay by the Writers Guild, Best Editing by the Editors Guild, and it won Best
Screenplay at the Independent Spirit Awards®.
His other best-known project is the Oscar®-winning Little Miss Sunshine, directed by Jonathan
Dayton and Valerie Faris, premiered at the 2006 Sundance Festival and stars Greg Kinnear, Toni Collette,
Steve Carell, Paul Dano, Abigail Breslin and Alan Arkin. Fox Searchlight acquired Little Miss Sunshine for
the highest price paid in the history of the Sundance Festival. The film was honored as Best Picture by
the Producers Guild of America, the Independent Spirit Awards®, and the Screen Actors Guild Awards®,
and nominated for Best Picture by the Golden Globes® and the Academy Awards®. Little Miss Sunshine
won two Oscars®, one for Alan Arkin’s performance and the other for Michael Arndt.
Beugg has also previously served as executive producer of Paramount Pictures’ Fun Size, the
directorial debut of writer/producer Josh Schwartz. The Halloween comedy, starring Victoria Justice,
Johnny Knoxville, and Chelsea Handler, was released in the fall of 2012. He was executive producer of
Ken Kwapis’ recent Number One box office hit, He’s Just Not That into You, a romantic comedy based on
the best-selling book of the same name. The Warner Bros. release stars Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer
Connelly, Drew Barrymore, Scarlett Johansson, Ginnifer Goodwin, and Ben Affleck. Beugg produced Tim
Story’s inspirational basketball drama, Hurricane Season, which stars Forest Whitaker, Taraji Henson,
Bonnie Hunt and Lil Wayne. He is also executive producer of Wayne Kramer’s immigration drama,
Crossing Over, for the Weinstein Co. and Kennedy Marshall. The film stars Harrison Ford, Sean Penn,
Ashley Judd and Ray Liotta.
His other Sundance premiere projects from past years include Arie Posin’s The Chumscrubber,
starring Ralph Fiennes, Glenn Close, and Jamie Bell, which DreamWorks released in 2005; Gary Walkow’s
Beat; Scott Sanders’ Thick as Thieves; and George Hickenlooper’s Some Folks Call It a Sling Blade. Some
of Beugg’s other notable projects are Bart Freundlich’s Catch That Kid (Fox), Marleen Gorris’ Carolina
(Miramax), Jim Stern’s It’s the Rage, and George Hickenlooper’s Big Brass Ring. In his spare time, he has
helped “America’s Most Wanted” capture criminals by producing 40 crime reenactments; filmed Jeff
Probst, the host of “Survivor,” as he parachuted out of a plane to deliver the votes of the tribal council;
and warned the Broken Lizard comedy troupe about the dangers of drinking an excessive amount of
digital beer.
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Prior to entering the film business, Beugg worked in the White House Budget Office (OMB) in
energy and environmental policy and in the management consulting industry for BCG and ZS Associates.
In the latter jobs, he spent considerable hours up in the air. He also studied acting with Ted Liss in
Chicago. He received an M.B.A./public policy degree from Stanford University and a B.A. from Yale
University. Beugg lives in Los Angeles with his wife and three children.
GIGI PRITZKER (Executive Producer) is an accomplished film and stage producer,
businesswoman, and an active philanthropist, who serves as co-founder and CEO of film production and
financing company OddLot Entertainment.
Through OddLot Entertainment, which she founded in 2001, Pritzker has teamed with leading
filmmakers to produce a range of high-quality, often literary-based motion pictures, such as 2010’s
Academy Award®-nominated adult drama Rabbit Hole, 2013’s critically acclaimed comedy hit The Way,
Way Back, starring Steve Carell, and the film adaptation of the futuristic sci-fi novel Ender’s Game.
Upcoming projects include: Mortdecai, starring Johnny Depp, Gwyneth Paltrow, Ewan
McGregor, Olivia Munn, and Paul Bettany; and Jon Stewart’s directorial debut Rosewater. Pritzker has a
number of projects in development in both television and feature films including the definitive Albert
Einstein biopic “Einstein.”
Pritzker has actively worked to strategically expand OddLot Entertainment’s footprint in the
global motion picture business, partnering with Nick Meyer in 2011 to create the foreign sales company
Sierra/Affinity, staking a position in video-on-demand distribution through a partnership with Cinetic
Rights Management, and teaming with acclaimed filmmaker Robert Rodriguez to create a new
production company, Quick Draw Productions.
She is equally active in the realm of live theater. After owning and operating Los Angeles’
Coronet Theatre for a decade, she developed and produced the Tony Award®-winning musical “Million
Dollar Quartet” with her longtime stage partner Ted Rawlins, through her company Relevant Theatricals.
Currently in its third smash year of touring, “Million Dollar Quartet” – based on the legendary 1956 jam
session featuring Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash – is also playing at Harrah’s
in Las Vegas and is in its sixth year on stage in Chicago, making it the longest running Broadway musical
in Chicago history. “Million Dollar Quartet” will expand into China with a six-city tour beginning in 2015.
Relevant Theatricals also opened “Snapshots” with Stephen Schwartz (“Pippin,” “Wicked,” “Godspell”)
at the Goodspeed Opera House in the fall of 2013; and opens “Cumberland Blues,” a new musical
featuring music from Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter, in Seattle during the winter of 2014.
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Pritzker’s active philanthropy roles include the Chicago Children’s Museum (Past Chair), Children
Affected by AIDS Foundation, Cure Violence (National Advisory Board), Project& (Founder & Vice Chair),
and the Goodman Theatre of Chicago (Board Member). She was also selected as Participant in the U.S.
Department of Defense’s 2011 Joint Civilian Orientation Conference.
She studied anthropology at Stanford University. Living in Nepal for a year as an undergraduate
student led Pritzker to producing her first documentary feature in Bhutan with the BBC and kick-started
her long and successful career in the motion-picture business.
BILL LISCHAK (Executive Producer) joined OddLot Entertainment as Chief Operating Officer in
January 2007 and was promoted to Co-President in November 2012. Lischak oversees the filmed
entertainment company’s day-to-day operations and the ongoing implementation of its business plan.
At OddLot, he has spearheaded financing structures for major productions, established distribution
arrangements for its titles, and has created various joint ventures with top-level partners. From 1988 to
2006, Lischak served as President and COO of First Look Studios, which under his guidance grew from a
small $3 million foreign sales company into a $100 million multi-faceted distribution, sales, and
production operation, with a major U.S. theatrical and home entertainment distribution arm. He first
moved to Los Angeles in 1982 and worked as a CPA at Laventhol & Horwath, a large national accounting
firm, ultimately specializing in entertainment. He has a masters degree in taxation and graduated NYU's
Stern Business School where he also attended film school.
MICHAEL NATHANSON (Executive Producer) joined OddLot Entertainment as Co-President in
November 2012. Nathanson is a tenured motion-picture industry executive, who has previously served
in key management roles for MGM Pictures, Columbia Pictures and New Regency prior to joining
OddLot. He is also a successful film producer, with acclaimed credits including the Academy Award®winning L.A. Confidential and A Time to Kill. Nathanson served as President and Chief Operating Officer
of MGM Pictures for seven years, where he oversaw all facets of the company, including production,
business affairs, strategic planning, marketing, and distribution. MGM enjoyed many profitable years
under Nathanson’s watch, releasing three separate franchise films, including James Bond, Legally
Blonde, and Pink Panther. In addition, Nathanson was one of the principal architects who transitioned
MGM into a publically held company on the NYSE. Prior to joining MGM, Nathanson served as President
of Worldwide Production at Columbia Pictures, where he oversaw all production activities. During his
tenure, Nathanson supervised the IP acquisition for Spiderman and Men in Black. In Addition, Nathanson
49
has been the Chairman and CEO of New Regency where he worked with domestic distributor partner,
Warner Bros. He also forged profitable partnerships with Canal Plus, Toho Towa Co. Ltd. and Samsung,
among others. Throughout his career, Nathanson has produced or overseen numerous hit film titles
including Mr. Mom, The Prince of Tides, Boyz N the Hood, A River Runs Through It, Dracula, A League of
Their Own, In The Line Of Fire, Groundhog Day, Heat, Tin Cup, Barbershop and Legally Blonde, to name a
few. Early in his career, Nathanson served as Vice President of Production at MGM, United Artists, and
Warner Bros and spent several years at NBC Sports. He grew up in New York City, and graduated from
Ithaca College. Nathanson has received accolades including the 2006 Louis B. Mayer Motion Picture
Business Leader of the Year honor and the 2005 Sheba Humanitarian Award. He is also a member of The
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, The British Academy of Film and Television Arts and The
American Film Institute.
ERIC STEELBERG, ASC (Director of Photography) collaborates again with Ivan Reitman, having
photographed Up in the Air, with the senior Reitman producing and the younger Reitman writing and
directing. Steelberg’s recent cinematography work can also be seen in Young Adult, starring Charlize
Theron and Patton Oswalt, and Labor Day, with Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin. Steelberg also
photographed the Oscar®-nominated Juno, which Jason Reitman also directed.
Prior to that, Steelberg collaborated with Nanette Burstein on the romantic comedy Going
the Distance, starring Drew Barrymore and Justin Long; and with Marc Webb on the off-beat romantic
comedy 500 Days of Summer, starring Zooey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. He also shot
Bandslam, starring Vanessa Hudgens, David Bowie, and Lisa Kudrow, under the direction of Todd Graff.
Steelberg initially found theatrical achievement with the ALMA Award-winning
“Quinceanera,” which won both the Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award at the 2006 Sundance
Film Festival, as well as the John Cassavetes Award at the Independent Spirit Awards®.
A native of Los Angeles, Steelberg’s roots are in black and white photography. At age 16, he
shot his first short film, which won two national awards and one international award. He continued to
refine his talent lensing various short film projects, including numerous music videos and more than 75
television commercials.
STEPHEN ALTMAN’s (Production Designer) impressive list of motion picture credits includes: the
Academy Award®-winning Ray, Grosse Point Blank, What’s Love Got To Do With It, The Big Bounce, Hot
Rod, The Sisters, and Near Dark, along with several Robert Altman pictures including: Gosford Park
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(which he was nominated for a BAFTA, Academy Award®, and won the Independent Spirit Award® for
best Art Direction), Short Cuts, The Player, Cookie’s Fortune, The Gingerbread Man, Kansas City, Vincent
and Theo, and Fool for Love. He most recently designed the sci-fi thriller Chronicle for Twentieth
Century Fox.
Altman’s television credits include “Georgia O’Keefe,” the Emmy® nominated “The Ballad of
Lucy Whipple,” “The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial,” and “Tanner ‘88.”
SHELDON KAHN, A.C.E. (Editor) won the BAFTA Award and received an Academy Award®
nomination for co-editing One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest, and earned a second Oscar® nomination for
co-editing Out of Africa. He was associate producer of Ivan Reitman’s Legal Eagles, Ghostbusters II,
Twins, Kindergarten Cop, Junior, Beethoven’s 2nd and Six Days Seven Nights. He was also co-producer of
Casual Sex.
Kahn’s many feature editing credits also include: Hotel for Dogs, My Super Ex-Girlfriend, Be Cool,
Evolution, Father’s Day, Dave, The Electric Horseman, Absence of Malice, Private Benjamin, Same Time,
Next Year and La Bamba.
DANA E. GLAUBERMAN, A.C.E. (Editor) and Ivan Reitman have enjoyed multiple successful
collaborations. Glauberman previously edited Reitman’s box office hit No Strings Attached, starring
Ashton Kutcher and Natalie Portman. She also edited the Academy Award®- nominated Up in the Air,
which he produced and his son, Jason Reitman, directed. For the George Clooney-toplined Up in the Air,
Glauberman received her first BAFTA Award nomination for Best Editing in addition to the Hollywood
Film Festival's Editor of the Year Award.
Glauberman is currently editing Men, Women & Children, starring Adam Sandler and Jennifer
Garner. Prior to Draft Day, she edited Labor Day, for which she received a Hamilton Behind the Camera
Award for her outstanding work. She also received A.C.E. Eddie Award nominations for Young Adult, Up
in the Air, Juno, and Thank You For Smoking.
Other notable credits include the Barbra Streisand/Seth Rogen comedy The Guilt Trip, Love
Happens directed by Brandon Camp, and George Hickenlooper's Factory Girl. She also lent her time to
edit Ben Affleck's Gimme Shelter, a short film made for the UNHCR in their efforts to protect and
support refugees in the DR Congo and around the globe.
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A Los Angeles native, Glauberman realized her passion to become a film editor while in college,
often comparing the process to putting a jigsaw puzzle together – something that she loved doing as a
child.
New York City-based costume designer and stylist FRANK L. FLEMING (Costume Designer) has
designed extensively for film and television. Most recently his work can been seen in Starz’s much
anticipated series “Power,” Machine Gun Preacher, starring Gerard Butler and Morning Glory, starring
Rachel McAdams and Harrison Ford, as well as several other feature film and television projects
including the Oscar® nominated The Kite Runner.
Fleming has designed several features with Marc Forster as well as working with many other
notable directors including Steven Spielberg, Ridley Scott, Michael Apted, Jodie Foster, Spike Lee, and
Anthony Hemingway. In particular, he participated early in his career in the design of Malcolm X and
Amistad, both of which earned Academy Award® nominations for costume designer Ruth E. Carter. His
experience extends to celebrity styling and his work has landed Keri Russell on several best dressed lists.
With over 20 years in the entertainment business MICHAEL FISHER (Football Coordinator) has
worked on many of Hollywood’s most successful and popular sports films, television commercials, and
television shows. A member of both the Screen Actors Guild and Directors Guild of America, Fisher has
worked as a 2nd unit director, sports/stunt coordinator, and casting director, creating a unique niche for
himself in the entertainment business.
The list of films that have benefitted from Fisher’s work contains some of the most memorable
sports films in recent decades: Moneyball, The Blind Side, Hurricane Season, Glory Road, Brian’s Song,
Second String, and Remember the Titans. Even films where sports does not take center stage have
utilized Fisher to make any athletic or stunt activity ring true: Code Breakers, Crazy/Beautiful, Even
Money and The New Guy to name a few.
Fisher’s ability to bring an authentic and realistic look to the big screen, combined with his
professionalism, work ethic, and attention to detail has enabled him to work with many of Hollywood’s
most successful directors, production companies, and advertising agencies, as well as almost every
sports superstar for the past two decades.
In addition, Fisher produced and directed a best-selling instructional basketball DVD with Steve
Nash (two-time NBA MVP). He has produced other projects, which include the nationally televised
“Frito Lay Tailback Tee-It-Up” golf tournament, hosted by NFL Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson, as well
52
operating numerous basketball camps for NBA Hall of Famers Charles Barkley, Chuck Daly, and other
NBA stars.
53
Directed by Ivan Reitman
Written by
Rajiv Joseph & Scott Rothman
Produced by
Ivan Reitman, p.g.a
Produced by
Ali Bell, p.g.a.
Joe Medjuch, p.g.a.
Executive Producers
Tom Pollock
Michael Beugg
Executive Producers
Gigi Pritzker
Bill Lischak
Michael Nathanson
Director of Photography
Eric Steelberg, ASC
Production Designer
Stephen Altman
Editors
Sheldon Kahn, A.C.E.
Dana E. Glauberman, A.C.E.
Costume Designer
Frank Fleming
Music by
John Debney
Casting by
John Papsidera, CSA
Kevin Costner
Jennifer Garner
Denis Leary
Frank Langella
54
Sam Elliott
Sean Combs
Terry Crews
with
Ellen Burstyn
and
Chadwick Boseman
Rosanna Arquette
W. Earl Brown
Kevin Dunn
Arian Foster
Brad William Henke
Chi McBride
Griffin Newman
Josh Pence
David Ramsey
Patrick St. Esprit
Timothy Simmons
Tom Welling
Wade Williams
An
Ivan Reitman
Film
55
Unit Production Manager
Michael Beugg
First Assistant Director
Jason A. Blumenfeld
Second Assistant Director
Paul B. Uddo
CAST
(In Order of Appearance)
Chris Berman
Danny
Tom Michaels
Walt Gordon
Mel Kiper
Jon Gruden
Sonny Weaver Jr.
Deion Sanders
Mike Mayock
Ali
Tony Rizzo
Aaron Goldhammer
Vontae Mack
Vontae’s Nephews
Attractive Woman
Earl Jennings
Ray Jennings
Anthony Molina
Coach Penn
Marx
Thompson
O’Reilly
War Room Scouts
War Room Intern
Heather
Rick the Intern
Chris Crawford
Bo Callahan
Barb Weaver
Tony “Bagel” Bagli
Alex Mack
Brian Drew
Locker Room Player
As himself
Dave Donaldson
Patrick St. Esprit
Chi McBride
As himself
As himself
Kevin Costner
As himself
As himself
Jennifer Garner
As himself
As himself
Chadwick Boseman
Jordan Harris
Zachary Littlejohn
Enré Laney
Terry Crews
Arian Foster
Frank Langella
Denis Leary
Timothy Simons
David Ramsey
Wade Williams
Bernard Canepari
Christopher Mele
Leilani Barrett
Michael Cipiti
Justin Zabor
Aswan Harris
Laura Steinel
Griffin Newman
Sean Combs
Josh Pence
Ellen Burstyn
Brad William Henke
As himself
Tom Welling
John Lee
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Pete Begler
Ralph Mowry
Coach Moore
Max Stone
Russ Brandon
Marc Honan
Seahawks Fans
Marvin
Phil
Wyndham
Commissioner Roger Goodell
Rich Eisen
Bill Zotti
Vontae’s Agent
Angie
John Heffernan
Rebecca Haarlow
Ray Lewis
Robert Starks
Nate Davies
Draft Day Players
Bo Callahan's Girlfriend
Agent
Vontae’s Girlfriend
Brian Drew’s Wife
Brian Drew’s Daughter
Vontae’s Grandmothers
Jeff Carson
Ken Fiore
Joel Bussert
Frank Supovitz
Sammy Choi
Jeff Darlington
Mike Florio
Alex Marvez
Seth Wickersham
Jim Brown
Bernie Kosar
Monique Brown
Phil Taylor
TJ Ward
D'Qwell Jackson
Andre Bello
Football Coordinator
Wallace Langham
W. Earl Brown
Sam Elliott
Christopher Cousins
As himself
As himself
Erin Drake
Quincy Dunn-Baker
Kevin Dunn
Gregory D. Rush
Tom Headlee
As himself
As himself
Patrick Breen
David Dunn
Rosanna Arquette
As himself
As herself
As himself
Stephen Hill
James Brewer
Ramses Barden
Zoltan Mesko
Demario Davis
Margot Danis
Emil Boccio
Leanora Haselrig
Jennifer McMahan
Sophie Guest
Brenda Adrine
Edwina Hadley
Pat Healy
As himself
As himself
As himself
As himself
As himself
As himself
As himself
As himself
As himself
As himself
As herself
As himself
As himself
As himself
Aaron Hill
Michael Fisher
57
Stunt Coordinator
Richard Fike
Stand-Ins
Katie Brennan
Martin Carlton
CREW
Associate Producers
Production Supervisor
Location Manager
Art Director
Set Decorator
Additional Editing by
Split Screens & Main Titles by
"A" Camera Operator/Steadicam Operator
First Assistant "A" Camera
Second Assistant "A" Camera
"B" Camera Operator/2nd Unit Director of Photography
First Assistant "B" Camera
Second Assistant "B" Camera
Additional Camera Operator
Additional Second Assistant Camera
DIT
Still Photographer
Unit Publicist
Near Set Dailies Colorist
Near Set Dailies QC/Assistant
VFX Editors
First Assistant Editors
Apprentice Editor
Post Production Supervisor
Post Production Coordinator
Script Supervisor
Jason Blumenfeld
Alex Plapinger
Robin Mulcahy Fisichella
Gregory H. Alpert
John E. Bucklin
Maria A. Nay, SDSA
Robert Malina
Gareth Smith & Jenny Lee
Matthew Moriarty
Donny Steinberg
VanNessa Y. Manlunas
Cale Finot
Sebastian Vega
Nathan Crum
P.K. Munson
Nikki Gray
Arthur To
Dale Robinette
Guy Adan
Jeremy Voissem
Duane Wood
Maria Gonzales
Neil Greenberg
Omar Hassan-Reep
Justin Yates
Erika Edgerley
Tricia Miles Tharp
Eric Reich
Jayne-Ann Tenggren
58
Production Sound Mixer
Boom Operator
Sound Utility
Video Assist
Video Playback Engineer
Additional Video Playback
Re-Recording Mixers
Supervising Sound Editor
Supervising Music Editor
Assistant Location Managers
Location Assistants
Key Grip
Best Boy Grip
Dolly Grips
Grips
Rigging Key Grip
Rigging Best Boy Grip
Rigging Grips
Libra Head Operator
Technocrane Operator
Gaffer
Best Boy Electric
Electricians
Rigging Gaffer
Additional Rigging Gaffer
Rigging Best Boy Electric
Steven A. Morrow, CAS
Craig Dollinger
Marlowe L. Taylor
James F. Brown
Mark Hochman
Wayne Fox
Gary Bourgeois
Anna Behlmer
Michael J. Benavente
Brent Brooks
Timothy D. Kanieski
Nicholas Deroo
Jeffrey J. Cain
Katie Koeblitz
David Richardson
Dan Jarrell
John Mang
Chris "Sal" Salamone
Mike Dittiacur
Chris Neusser
Donnie Schneider
Gary Kangrga
Jeff "Fish" Fisher
Rick Stern
Dean Ross
Jason Jouver
Jason Kirker
Ryan Keeper
David Pipik
Kevin Hines
Jeffrey Sefcek
Doug Cronin
Joseph J. Thompson
Craig "The Limey" Nix
Joe Cuzan
Robert Krattiger
Julie “Doc” Lindstrom
Brian Boyll
Tom P. Burnett
Kevin Coyne
Ron Zabarsky
Wayne Marshall
Russ Faust
Scott Lipez
59
Rigging Electricians
Additional Rigging Electrics
Additional Art Director
Art Department Coordinator
Graphic Designer
Additional Graphic Designer
Art Department Production Assistants
Additional Set Decorator
Set Decoration Buyer
Leadperson
On-Set Dressers
Set Dressers
Hal Carlton-Ford
Matt Hayes
Clifton Radford
Briget Wolfe
Jake Hossfeld
Scott Osowski
Alberto Viglietta
Michael Dickman
Mark Rappoport
Dave Vacca
Gregory A. Weimerskirch
Jenn Albaugh
Will Eastin
Megan Greydanus
Shannon Foley
Bill Boehme
Rebecca Brown
Carmen Navis
Justin Pelissero
Kip A. Bartlett
Kelleigh Miller
Timothy Barnhill
Jonathan Curotola
Leyna Haller
Kirsten Lee Houck
Timothy Johnson
Vanessa O'Kelley
Todd Walker
Donna Williams
Property Master
Assistant Property Master
Property Assistants
Dwayne Grady
Jonathan Shaffer
Susan M. Chrysler
James Cika
Kendall Embrescia
Jon Griffith
Jennifer Klide
Costume Supervisor
Assistant Costume Designer
Key Costumer
On-Set Costumers
Additional Set Costumer
Seamstress
Costume Production Assistant
Wendy M. Craig
Lisa Frucht
Edward T. Hanley
Rudy Rojas
Rachel Demski
Carla Shivener
Christine B. Lee
Candace N. Brown
Department Head Makeup Artists
Francisco X. Perez
60
Makeup Artists
Tattoo Artist
Department Head Hairstylist
Key Hairstylist
Hairstylist
Additional Hairstylist
Casting Associate
Casting Assistant
Cleveland Casting by
New York Casting by
Cleveland Casting Associate
New York Casting Associates
Extras Casting Coordinators
Production Accountant
First Assistant Accountant
Second Assistant Accountant
Additional Second Assistant Accountant
Payroll Accountant
Accounting Clerks
Post Production Accounting by
Post Production Accountants
Production Coordinator
Assistant Production Coordinator
Travel Coordinator
Office Production Assistants
Second Second Assistant Director
Additional Second Assistant Director
Key Set Production Assistant
Set Production Assistants
Deborah LaMia Denaver
Monique Hahn
Jacquelyn Adamson
Leslie Shayne Kohn
Rick Stratton
Peter Tothpal
Jennifer Johnson
Nancy Keslar
Tonya Johnson
Deanna Brigidi-Stewart
Kim Winther
Donna Belajac, CSA
Jessica Kelly
Suzanne Smith Crowley
Laura Zech
Erin Darke
Rebecca Dealy
Kate Geller
Kathy Remski
Rose Gilpin
Wendy M. Price
Ben Tayarani
Caroline Andrade
Sarah Gray
Karen Turner
Mark "Skip" Keller
Angella M. Smith
Rice Gorton Pictures
Emily Rice
Liam Hearne
Maria de los Angeles Uribe
Amanda Sutton
Renee Hines
Gary L. Trentham II
Carolyn Corzine
Daniel Huizar
Peter Keller
Katlyn Neylon
Harrison Walsh
Gerson O. Paz
Eric Hollenbeck
Mia La Monica
Molly Bannan
Ciara D’Altorio
Kimberly Herman
Gina La Monica
61
Jordan Weir
Assistant to Mr. Reitman
Assistants to Ms. Bell
Assistant to Mr. Medjuck & Mr. Beugg
Assistants to Mr. Pollock
Assistant to Ms. Pritzker
Assistants to Mr. Plapinger
Assistant to Mr. Costner
Assistant to Ms. Garner
Assistant to Mr. Leary
Special Effects Coordinator
Special Effects Technicians
Construction Coordinator
Construction Foreman
Utility Foreman
CNC Operator/Toolman
Carpenters
Construction Production Assistant
Key Scenic Artist
Stand By Painter
Painters
Transportation Coordinator
Eric Reich
Katie Hodges
Grace Thompson
Elizabeth Nunnally
Krystee Morgan
Rachael Godfrey
Zdenka Turecek
Kendall Farley
Jolene Bolinger
Justin McGoldrick
James Hagedorn
Maureen Grosser
Sawyer Williams
Richard Fike
Thom Allport
Tom Dziak
Norman Marolt
Brian Searle
David F. Spencer Sr.
David F. Spencer Jr.
Jonathan Yurco
Buster Pile
John S. Bukala
James K. Butler
Cody Pile
Dennis M. Boddy
David L. Edington
James Holden
Thomas Kiousis
Mike "Bubba" Matesic
Adam S. Miller
Michael Richer
James Taylor Jr.
Robert Vitas
Scott B. Wood
Richard Zitello
Emily Pile
John A. Kelly
Gregory Puchalski
Terry Myers
Christine L. Dugan
Jack Gardner
Travis Myers
Al Burton
62
Transportation Captain
Transportation Dispatcher
Drivers
Caterer
Head Chef
Catering Assistants
Key Craft Service
Craft Service Assistant
Set Medics
Kevin Patton
Kimberley Burton
Albert Adams
Thomas Burton
Ronald Butler
Paula D. Collins
Richard Crow
Esau Dean
John Victor Dell’Anno
Robert Favino
Joe Feeney
Milomir Gacic
Christopher G. Gardner
Dominic B. Giampaolo
Jim Gibbons
George Gordon
Jeremy Greene
Christina Grozik
Michael Hienton
Timothy Horta
Terry D. Hugo
Terry D. Hugo II
George Junkins
James B. Lee
Kevin Lee
Thomas R. Litto
Joseph J. Lukcso
James Lynch
Sean P. Lynch
James B. McClarty Jr.
Terry Lee Moore
David Palagyi
Alexandria M. Pesto
Byron Roland
Patrick Roland
Greg Viglione
Tim Weber
Hat Trick Catering
Grant Mitchell
Jordan Delgado
Jeffrey P. Francek
Kevin Harner
Heath Martin
William Ferruso
Matt Preuer
Aaron T. Bolton
Sarah Janik
63
Set Security
Product Placement
Product Placement Coordinator
Clearances Provided by
Jonathan “JT” Thompson
Pentmark
Christy Adair
Cleared By Ashley
Ashley Kravitz
NEW YORK UNIT
Unit Production Manager
Second Assistant Director
Second Assistant "A" Camera
First Assistant "B" Camera
Second Assistant "B" Camera
Digital Loader
Script Supervisor
Boom Operator
Sound Utility
Video Assist
Key Grip
Best Boy Grip
Dolly Grips
Grips
Gaffer
Best Boy Electric
Electricians
Generator Operators
On-Set Dresser
Neri Kyle Tannenbaum
Thomas K. Lee
Paul Schilens
Douglas Foote
Paul Bode
Eric Schwager
Amber N. Barrera
Anne Rapp
James Baker
David C. Manahan
Joe Trammell
Devin Donegan
Alexander J. Nobbs
Christopher Murphy
Brian Carmichael
Bill Vargo
John Erbes-Chan
Adam Snyder
Jeremy Conley
Rob Harlow
Robaire Feldmann
Eric Williams
Russell Engels
James Mah
Doug Dalisera
Jim Fitzpatrick
Richard Fogel
Charles Friel
Eric Kutner
Ryan Minelli
Timothy McAuliffe
George Potter
Mandie M. DeMeskey
64
Property Master
Assistant Property Master
Property Assistants
Rachael Weinzimer
Tonero Williams
Eoin Lambe
Heather D. Kane
Second Assistant Costume Designer
Set Costumer
Additional Costumer
Costume Production Assistants
Beulah S. Bigwood
Virginia Cook
Hollie Nadel
Jeffrey K. James
Courtney Wheeler
Key Makeup Artist
Additional Makeup Artists
Scott Hersh
Angela Gallagher
Amy Tagliamonti
Extras Casting
Brad Kenny
Stephanie DeCourcey
Tony Behringer
Location Manager
Assistant Location Manager
Location Assistants
Lauri Pitkus
Josh Samataro
Gina Reznitsky
Christopher Ottaviano
Juan De La Rosa
Parking Coordinator
First Assistant Accountant
Payroll Accountant
Accounting Clerk
Production Coordinator
Assistant Production Coordinator
Office Production Assistant
Additional Second Assistant Director
Set Production Assistants
Assistant to Mr. Reitman
Transportation Coordinator
Transportation Captain
Caterer
Head Chef
Additional Chef
Key Craft Service
Liz Huizinga
Tawni Fritz-McAlpine
Lauren Wilkie
Adam Donnelly
Molly Dean Egan
Justin Harris
Jane Chase Wells
Mike Coast
Anthony Lote
Katie Kramer
Jennifer Santos
Monica Buccini
Dennis Salomone, Sr.
Dennis J. Salomone, Jr.
Premiere Catering
Michael Hernandez
Kenneth F. Cue
Martini Craft
Tony Harmening
65
AERIAL UNIT
Aerial Supervisor
Aerial Director of Photography
Pilots
Matthew Moriarty
Patrick Longman
Cherokee Walker
David Paris
Brian Reynolds
Shannon Burton
POST PRODUCTION
Assistant Sound Editor
Dialogue Editors
Sound Effects Editors
Foley Editor
Lynn Sable
Susan Dudeck
Alison Fisher
Jack Whittaker
Adam Kopald
Ben Wilkins
Mark Pappas
ADR Mixers
Judah Getz
Evan Daum
Foley Artists
Alicia Stevenson
Dawn Lunsford
Scott Curtis
Foley Mixer
Post Production Sound Facility Services Provided by Technicolor at Paramount
Re-Recording Mix Technician
ADR Voice Casting by
ADR Cast
Laura Wiest
The Loop Squad
Stephen Apostolina
Kimberly Bailey
William Calvert
Patricia Connolly
Edward Frierson
Terence Mathews
Juan Pope
Michelle Ruff
Zach Selwyn
Kristin Steigewalt
Mark Sussman
Jeff Witzke
66
MOE Animator
Post Production Assistant
Theo Alexopolous
Katherine Berg
Dolby Sound Consultant
Bryan Pennington
Digital Intermediate by
Supervising Digital Colorist
Second Digital Colorist
Digital Intermediate Producer
Digital Intermediate Editor
Project Manager
Editorial Services Provided by
End Crawl by
Visual Effects by
Visual Effects Supervisor
On-Set Supervisor
Visual Effects Producer
Visual Effects Coordinator
Compositing Supervisor
Technicolor
Michael Hatzer
Chris Jensen
Bruce Lomet
Everette Jbob Webber
Ladd Lanford
EPS-Cineworks
Scarlet Letters
LOOK! EFFECTS
Mat Krentz
Peter Crosman
Jodie Camilleri
Ryan Flick
Debora Dunphy
Digital Artists
Mei Chu
Anita Clipston
Mark Doney
Roberto Flores
Jean-Francois Houde
Tom Lamb
Joseph Li
Jordan Pachal
Hojin Park
Calvin Romeyn
Ben Sumner
Miyuki Tanaka
Tina Wallace
Jessica Wan
Matt Yeoman
Pipeline TDs
Mark Stewart
Ren-Wei Yang
Executive Visual Effects Producer
Wendy Lanning
Senior Management
Steve Dellerson
Mark Driscoll
Visual Effects by
CoSA VFX
67
ESPN Graphics Team
Senior Coordinating Designer, Motion Graphics
Art Director, Creative Services
Lead Designer, Creative Services
Emerging Technology Enhancements
James Chisholm
Lucas Nickerson
Scott Dickens
Michael Flannery
NFL Graphics Team
Real-time Systems Manager, NFL Network
Real-time Systems Programmer, NFL Network
Real-time Systems Producer, NFL Network
Senior Graphics Producer, NFL Network
Senior Special Projects Manager, NFL Network
Video Projection Equipment Provided by
Prints by
Lab Color Timer
Lab Account Manager
Account Managers Assistant
Stock Images Provided by
Additional Footage Provided by
Cameras Provided by
Camera Cranes, Dollies & Remote Camera Systems by
Lighting Equipment Provided by
Grip Equipment Provided by
Payroll Service Provided by
Insurance Provided by
Production Financing Provided by
Completion Guaranty Provided by
Music Score Coordinator
Score Production Supervisors
Patrick Lee
Dennis Zeeb, Jr.
Marc Selik
Marc Mata
Sara Ries
American Hi-Definition
Deluxe
George Chavez
Hugo G. Gordillo
Charles McCusker II
AP Images
Thinkstock
NFL Films
Corbis
ESPN Productions
Getty Images
NFL Network
T3Media
Fletcher Camera
PC&E
West Coast Camera
Chapman / Leonard Studio Equipment, Inc.
Midwest Grip & Lighting Co.
Paskal Lighting
Vincent Lighting
Angel City Grip
Cast & Crew Entertainment Services
Arthur J. Gallagher Insurance Services
OneWest Bank, FSB
Alphonse Lordo
Film Finances Inc.
Lola Debney
Stephanie Pereida
Natalie Stowell
68
Debney Productions Technical Assistant
Recorded by
Score Mixed by
Electronic Music Programmer
Score Production
Orchestra
Music Clearance and Licensing
Music Supervisor
Jaime Hartwick
Noah Snyder
Chris Fogel
Sebastian Arocha Morton
Dan Savant
Macedonia Muzik Entertainment
Matt Lilley / MCL Music Services, Inc.
Tracy McKnight
"NFL ON FOX - THEME"
Written by Phil Garrod, Reed Hays and Scott Schreer
"RENO"
Written by Michael Joseph Hewitt, Craig A. Rose, Kent S. Ross and Michael Matthew Turallo
Performed by The Gods of Mucho
Courtesy of Urband & Lazar Music Publishing, Inc.
"BORN TO RISE"
Written by Alexander Francis Barry, Mark Kasprzyk and Julian Tomarin
Performed by Redlight King
Courtesy of Hollywood Records
SPECIAL THANKS
Special Thanks to the National Football League
National Football League Players Association
Ohio Film Office
Greater Cleveland Film Commission
Cleveland Browns Football Company LLC
Radio City Music Hall and Madison Square Garden
NFL Network
ESPN
WKYC Cleveland
Corporate College East, A Division of Cuyahoga Community College
The City of Cleveland
State of Ohio, Governor John Kasich
"TOUCHDOWN!" provided courtesy of Leigh Weaver and Beau Gage
Heidi Clark
Kansas City Chiefs
Seattle Seahawks
Buffalo Bills
Houston Texans
Jacksonville Jaguars
FILMED ON LOCATION IN
Cleveland, OH
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New York City, NY
All names, logos, symbols, emblems and designs of the NFL and its teams depicted in this motion picture
are trademarks of the NFL and its teams and were used with permission of the National Football League.
© 2013 Sesame Workshop. Sesame Street® and Cookie Monster, trademarks and design
elements are owned and licensed by Sesame Workshop. All Rights Reserved.
The NYPD name, logos, and insignia are trademarks of the
City of New York and are used with the City’s permission.
Arri Alexa
[logo]
Fletcher Camera
[logo]
Chapman Leonard Studio Equipment, Inc.
[logo]
Prints by
[Deluxe logo]
Color by
Technicolor
[logo]
TEAMSTERS
[logo]
IATSE
[logo]
SAG / AFTRA
[logo]
PGA
[logo]
DOLBY DIGITAL®
[logo]
DATASAT®
[logo]
MPAA #48793
[logo]
MOTION PICTURE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA, INC.
© 2014 Summit Entertainment, LLC and Odd Lot Pictures, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
The events, characters and firms depicted in this photoplay are fictitious.
Any similarity to actual persons, living or dead, or to actual events or firms is purely coincidental.
Ownership of this motion picture is protected under the laws of the United States
and all other countries throughout the world. All rights reserved.
Any unauthorized duplication, distribution, or exhibition of this film or any part thereof (including soundtrack)
is an infringement of the relevant copyright and will subject the infringer to severe civil and criminal penalties.
Ownership of this motion picture is protected by copyright and other applicable laws, distribution
and any unauthorized duplication, or exhibition of this motion picture could result in
criminal prosecution as well as civil liability.
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DRAFT DAY
[SUMMIT LOGO]
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