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WAKING UP IN RENO - OFFICIAL PRESS KIT
At the heart of the hilarity in WAKING UP IN RENO are the quirks and flaws of four very different best friends, each of
whom is searching, however recklessly, for a way to make their marriages run a little more smoothly. Bringing these colorful
characters to life is a matching cast of four of Hollywood's most versatile and enjoyable actors - who had a blast revealing
the all-too-human search for love amidst a world of Tony Orlando concerts and six foot tall truck tires. From the start,
the filmmakers knew they needed an ensemble that would click together the way real-life married couples and best friends do
- who could bicker and banter like the best of them.
"We wanted these two couples to really seem like they know one another well enough that they can do or say anything around
each other," explains producer Bob Salerno. "You have to really believe they're the very best of friends because that
brings out the comedy when you realize there's an affair going on among them, with all the anxiety and dilemmas that
creates. We wanted the cast to feel like a family - a dysfunctional family, for sure, but a family."
The filmmakers also wanted the cast to be filled with fun surprises. From the beginning, it was known that Lonnie
Earl Dodd, the charismatic car salesman with a slight trust problem, would be played by Billy Bob Thornton. But the
rest of the cast went totally against expectations - the usually tough and invincible Patrick Swayze plays the insecure,
in-over-his-head, push-over Roy; the sophisticated and versatile actress, Charlize Theron, plays the boisterous Candy
with the Daisy Mae hair; and British actress Natasha Richardson plays Darlene as a wallflower just waiting to break out
and go wild.
Says Jordan Brady: "It was a wonderful opportunity to be surrounded by such an amazing collection of talent
in such hilarious situations."
Charlize Theron as Candy Kirkendall
(Click for larger image)
As Lonnie Earl Dodd, Billy Bob Thornton exudes the qualities of what Jordan Brady calls "a lovable but unstoppable
trouble-maker, the guy who just can't help himself." Thornton sees Lonnie Earl as a good-hearted man who hasn't
quite come to terms with the notion of responsibility. "He's just having himself a good old time," admits Thornton,
"but he can't quite figure out why his wife won't even kiss him anymore."
Natasha Richardson as Darlene Dodd
(Click for larger image)
Thornton could definitely relate to Lonnie Earl's total inability to walk away from a challenge - especially
the offer of 50 bucks to eat a 72 ounce steak at the famous Big Texan roadside restaurant. "I had actually eaten
there myself a couple times," admits Thornton. "And I could see Lonnie Earl doing this because he's not the kind
of guy to turn his back on temptation. Plus, he's too cheap to pass up a free meal."
Billy Bob Thornton as Lonnie Earl Dodd
(Click for larger image)
Thornton was particularly pleased to have the chance to work with his friend, and fellow Southerner, Patrick Swayze,
who plays Roy. Says Thornton: "When we got Patrick to do the part, I was really pleased because I knew that he totally
got this guy. He's from Texas, so he knows this type of character through and through. Also, Patrick's done a lot of
movies where he is the hero but he's never gotten a chance to play a sweet, innocent guy like Roy."
Patrick Swayze as Roy Kirkendall
(Click for larger image)
Swayze's biggest concern, he says, was not to stereotype the humorously hapless Roy in any way. "I didn't want him to
seem too silly or too pathetic, because I wanted people to also see who he really is: a nice guy who's just never stuck
up for himself. That's funny, but it's also real."
Adds Jordan Brady: "Patrick Swayze gives a performance that I think will surprise audiences because he is certainly not
playing the same kind of 'Dirty Dancing' leading man that they are used to seeing."
Another unexpected performance comes from Natasha Richardson as Darlene Dodd, who goes from being quietly confused about
her mellowing marriage to getting vengeance on her cheating husband with gusto. Says Jordan Brady: "There couldn't be a
better Darlene and you'd never even know that Natasha wasn't from Arkansas. Her transformation of the character is just
sparkling - she starts off as this woman who's down low and miserable and she ends up literally taking over the keys to
the trip. It's Darlene who ends up controlling the situation in a truly funny but uplifting way. Natasha brings out not
ony the humor of the character but her heart."
Richardson was attracted to WAKING UP IN RENO's free-wheeling comic style. "The script just made me laugh," she says,
"and what I liked about it is that not only was it funny, it was very honest and raw, too. I'm always looking for new
challenges in my work and I saw Darlene as a great one. She doesn't come from my culture or background, but I felt I
could relate to what she wants as a person - which is to get that spark back, no matter what it takes."
Rounding out the foursome is Candy, the knockout wife and daddy's girl who's trying to get pregnant with Roy even as
she's having an affair with Lonnie. It is Candy who always seems to wind up in the most compromising positions... literally.
"Charlize Theron has that rare combination of extraordinary beauty and real talent as a comedienne. I don't thing people have
really had a chance to see how hysterically comical she can be on screen, but as Candy, she is just a hoot," says Jordan
Brady. "Charlize was always pushing her lines to make them that much brighter and funnier."
Theron says that Candy was particularly appealing to play because "she is so filled with comic contradictions." She
continues: "Candy's exhaustingly energetic, she likes to have fun, be the life of the party, and she wears these really
outrageous outfits but she's also got a good heart and truly feels bad about her affair with Lonnie Earl. She wants her
marriage to work and she sincerely does want to have a baby with Roy. So, all those opposites are a blast to inhabit.
Plus, it's a really funny story, and unlike anything I've done before."
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