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Written By GingersnapComments Off on Damian Lewis in Run This Town: A First Look – Nov 19, 2018
Ford Nation of Toronto
by Damianista | Fan Fun with Damian Lewis | November 19, 2018
Rob Ford was no ordinary mayor. He was regularly involved in controversy from 2010 to 2014 as he ran the city of Toronto. Ford was, in particular, repeatedly videotaped and photographed while intoxicated in public, culminating in his being recorded smoking crack cocaine as reported by the Kevin Donovan and Robyn Doolittle of the Toronto Star. The Star won the Michener Award, one of the highest distinctions in Canadian journalism, for the investigative journalism.
“The Toronto Star exposed Ford’s public drunkenness, boorish behavior, abuses of his office, and existence of a video of him smoking crack cocaine accompanied by members of drug gang. The Star did not waver as the mayor countered every story with vehement denials and attacks.”
Well, some dreams come true and we have been living the dream since we got word late April that Damian Lewis would play the iconic Hollywood actor Steve McQueen in Quentin Tarantino’s latest movie Once Upon a Time in Hollywood!
As our long-time readers know, we have been rooting for Damian to play Steve McQueen for more than three years now. JaniaJania wrote this article about why Damian Lewis should play Steve McQueen when we got word back in 2015 that a Steve McQueen biopic was in works. And she also tweeted a question to be asked to Damian at NY Times Talks in 2016 about whether he would consider playing McQueen.
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood Update – July 24, 2017
First Look at Transforming Hollywood Boulevard Back to the 1960’s
by Chris Nicolas | LA Magazine | July 19, 2018
About one year from today, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood will hit theatres. Firm plot details are mostly being kept under wraps right now, but is rumoured to be split into thematic chapters in the style of Pulp Fiction – the story will take place in Los Angeles in the summer of 1969 at the height of hippy Hollywood when the Charles Manson cult was wreaking havoc. The two lead characters are Rick Dalton (DiCaprio), former star of a western TV series, and his longtime stunt double Cliff Booth (Pitt). Both are struggling to make it in a Hollywood they don’t recognize anymore. Rick has a very famous next-door neighbor Sharon Tate, of the famed Manson Family murders. Even though the movie will deal with Charles Manson and the famed Manson Family murders, it’s been made clear that particular subject matter won’t be the main focus.
Damian has been cast in a small role as Steve McQueen but in what capacity, we do not know. For starters, the inclusion of Bruce Lee and Steve McQueen in the film is connected. Both actors were clients of Jay Sebring, a world-renowned hair stylist who was a major fixture in 1960’s Los Angeles. Sebring was known for bringing European hair techniques to America and he established a name for himself when he popularized the feathering and layering of male hair, which was dubbed the “Sebring Look.” Sebring helped Bruce Lee find work teaching kung fu to Hollywood stars, including Steve McQueen and Roman Polanski.
L to R: McQueen, Tate, Polanski
History states McQueen is said to have been invited by Jay Sebring to Sharon Tate’s (Roman Polanski’s wife) house dinner party, but he no-showed. Preparing to attend the dinner, McQueen ran into a female friend and decided to spend the evening with her instead. That night in 1969 would become one of the most notorious in modern American history: Tate and Sebring, along with two of their friends and Tate’s unborn child, were brutally murdered by the followers of Charles Manson. Spending the evening with his female friend saved McQueen’s life. His close call with death spooked him so bad that he went into a state of paranoia. His then-wife Neile Adams recalled that, after the murders, McQueen “became more paranoid and wouldn’t let me go anywhere without a gun.”
The facade of Jay Sebring’s former salon on Fairfax Ave in West Hollywood is being rebuilt. Sebring (Hirsch) reinvented the men’s haircut and the very image of a hairstylist. He was young and handsome and dated gorgeous actresses, including at one time, Sharon Tate. In the late ’60s, he owned a salon on the corner of Melrose and Fairfax that attracted a long list of celebrity clients, including Steve McQueen and Bruce Lee. At the time, barbers charged around $1.50 for a haircut, but a session with Sebring could cost up to $25.
As we wait for more information about Damian’s role as McQueen, let’s take a peek at additional set photos that are surfacing, as Los Angeles has been transported back in time. Store fronts, bus benches, theater marquee signs, billboards, neon signs and murals along Hollywood Boulevard and other West Hollywood thoroughfares have been gussied up to re-ceate the groovy, psychedelic era of the 60’s.
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on Damian To Play Steve McQueen – June 6, 2018
Quentin Tarantino’s ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood‘ Adds Damian Lewis
by Mike Fleming Jr | Deadline | June 6, 2018
EXCLUSIVE:Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in America has added to its cast of characters wandering about in Los Angeles at the time Charles Manson’s Sharon Tate murders. The Sony picture has brought aboard Damian Lewis, Luke Perry, Emile Hirsch, Dakota Fanning, Clifton Collins Jr, Al Pacino, Keith Jefferson and Nicholas Hammond in supporting roles for a lineup that already includes Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie, Burt Reynolds, Timothy Olyphant, Michael Madsen and Tim Roth.
As befits a Tarantino film, the casting intrigues: Lewis will play Hollywood’s handsome ‘King of Cool’ and iconic actor Steve McQueen; Fanning is set as Squeaky Fromme, the Manson disciple who later tried to assassinate President Gerald Ford; Hammond will play director Sam Wanamaker; and Hirsch is Jay Sebring, the Hollywood hairstylist who was one of four victims in the Tate murders on Cielo Drive.
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on Damian Transforms for Run This Town – April 23, 2018
See Damian Transform Into Toronto Ex-Mayor Rob Ford
by etalk.ca | April 23, 2018
Damian’s transformation into late Toronto Mayor Rob Ford for the movie Run This Town is complete. He took to Twitter to give us fans an inside look into the prosthetic preparation.
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on Damian to Play Rob Ford in the Movie ‘Run This Town’ – April 10, 2018
Damian Will Play a Flashy, Unpredictable Politician with No Filter
by Michael Oliveira | The Globe and Mail | April 10, 2018
As we initially reported back on March 26 and confirmed by both Deadline and The Hollywood Reporter, Damian will play controversial ex-Toronto Mayor Rob Ford in the drama, Run This Town. In an interview released today, Damian revealed he was fitted with a prosthetic in order to play the former mayor, who died in 2016 at the age of 46. Damian told Kit Magazine the process took an entire afternoon, which involved “getting his face and head completely covered in silicon strips, breathing through a small hole near the nose.”
However, writer-director Ricky Tollman clarified the film is not a biopic. Tollman says Ford is actually a fairly minor character in the story of a young wannabe journalist and other millennials who struggle to make a living in a post-recession economy. Ben Platt plays a bumbling newsroom intern who wants to break the story on the Ford scandal — but is several steps behind other reporters.
Tollman said he was thrilled to recruit Lewis to portray Ford, calling him “one of the most talented actors working today.” “I thought that this is a guy that can play the moments of darkness and depth, but can also play the lighter moments. Rob was a guy that was elected because people wanted to grab a beer with the guy, you know?” said Tollman.
“He [Lewis] took to the idea that this wasn’t a one-dimensional version of this character.”
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on Pre-Production: Flags Over Berlin – March 23, 2018
The Lewis Brothers At It Again?
by Gingersnap | damian-lewis.com | March 23, 2018
In an article published in The Astana Times, scriptwriter, producer and director Aidiye Aidarbekov stated, “I wrote the script for the Flags Over Berlin film produced by Dauren Toleukhanov. British filmmaker Gareth Lewis and actor Damian Lewis will join the project.”
Research indicates the film will be directed by Damian’s brother, who is a writer, producer and director. The film The Baker (2007), also known as Assassin in Love, starring Damian himself, was written and directed by Damian’s talented brother and business partner Gareth Lewis, a joint project produced under their production company at the time, Picture Farm, Ltd., along with partner Adrian Sturges. At the world premiere of The Baker at Canada’s Tremblant Film Festival, Gareth was named Best Director. Damian and Adrian Sturges also produced the Gareth Lewis written and directed short film Normal for Norfolk featuring the one and only Helen McCrory. It’s all in the family!
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on The Money Run: A CrowdFund Campaign – July 4, 2017
The Money Run
A $20 million helicopter heist in the middle of the Vietnam War. What could possibly go wrong?
Damian’s brother, Gareth Lewis, a screenwriter, director and producer living in London, is developing a screenplay in order to bring this remarkable story to the screen the way it should be. Flare Pictures, Gareth’s small independent production company in London, is:
raising money early on to create a script in hopes it will not only attract a stellar cast, but also remain true to the source material and the men who fought in Vietnam.
Damian and his brother last teamed up for The Baker, also known as Assassin in Love and we all know how great the collaboration turned out! The brothers will collaborate again on The Money Run. Once the project is greenlit, Gareth will direct and Damian will star in it. Damian tweeted in support of his brother:
This is your chance to get in on the ground floor for an unforgettable ride. For more information on how to lend your support for The Money Run, visit Indiegogo.
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on Billions Season One: First Takes – Oct 15, 2015
Billions is a new original series about the collision between a US attorney and a hedge fund billionaire played by Damian Lewis. Watch the first promo clip below.
Damian states, “The script was strongest script I had read in a while and I wanted to be a part of it.”
Showtime released the first poster for the upcoming series, which airs January 17,