Author-director Brian Skiba says he shaped a inventive reference to Oscar-winning actor Nicolas Cage whereas filming the interval drama Gunslingers.
Set within the fictional Kentucky city of Redemption within the early 1900s, the movie Gunslingers follows a gaggle of outlaws looking for new lives. Skiba, who had studied Nicolas Cage’s movies at school, admitted feeling barely intimidated at first.
“I grew up watching his films,” Skiba stated. “However after speaking with him, I realised we’re each artists who care deeply about storytelling. That created immediate respect between us.”
Regardless of filming in simply 18 days throughout twister season in 2024, Nicolas Cage embraced the problem. Skiba praised him as respectful, humble, {and professional}.
“Nic by no means hid away in a trailer,” he stated. “He sat in costume, close to the set, able to carry out. It was refreshing.”
Actor-producer Randall Batinkoff, identified for roles in College Ties and For Retains, was instrumental in bringing Nicolas Cage on board. “He instructed me Nic would do it, however we needed to begin capturing in two weeks,” Skiba recalled. “We scrambled, however made it work.”
Skiba initially wished Nicolas Cage to play the city’s mayor, however Cage most popular the position of Ben, a posh outlaw who finds faith.
“He appreciated that Ben had layers — a cold-blooded killer turned believer. We developed the character collectively. Watching Nic work was like a masterclass.”
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The forged additionally options Heather Graham, Stephen Dorff, and Jeremy Kent Jackson. Skiba, a self-described “collector of actors,” stated he trusted the workforce to ship below strain.
The movie explores how individuals with darkish pasts seek for redemption. “They weren’t all unhealthy,” Skiba stated. “Typically they had been simply caught within the fallacious circumstances.”
Skiba believes the period, simply after the Civil Struggle, provides the story a contemporary setting. “It wasn’t simply horses and lanterns. There was progress — and hope.”