Asheville’s own starlet, Andie MacDowell, continues to stay busy on the film front. Both sound like indie projects. First, there’s this:
NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) – Andie MacDowell, Cary Elwes and Brian Cox star in the thriller “As Good as Dead,” which is shooting in New York.
Elwes plays a left-wing extremist who goes on the run after killing a clergyman (Cox) involved with a white supremacist group. MacDowell plays the widow who hunts him down.
Jonathan Mossek is directing the indie project.
Then there’s this, which is interesting, considering that the Wake Forest football program continues to kick some butt:
NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) – A college football player’s tribute to his late brother inspired his team to a record season, and the poignant true story is now headed for the big screen.
Ryan Merriman, Aidan Quinn and Andie MacDowell will play the Abbate family in Rick Bieber’s indie drama “The 5th Quarter.”
After 15-year-old Luke Abbate was killed in a 2006 car crash and his organs donated to five people, Wake Forest (N.C.) junior Jon Abbate (Merriman) asked his coach to change his jersey number to Luke’s number, five. Just before the fourth quarter of each game, the linebacker began holding up five fingers along with his parents, Steven and Maryanne (Quinn and, in final negotiations, MacDowell) as they sat in section five of the stadium.
After news of the personal tribute spread, even opposing players and fans were joining them by the thousands, inspiring the family to launch the Five Foundation (http://www.fivefoundation.com/) dedicated to educating young adults about responsible driving. Abbate’s low-ranked team soon reached a school-record 11 wins and earned a trip to the Orange Bowl.
Writer-director Bieber acquired rights to the Abbates’ story and will begin the six-week shoot October 16 on and around the school’s Winston-Salem campus. Several real-life participants in the story will play themselves in the film, including the Abbates’ Atlanta-based pastor, Jon Abbate’s trainer and Wake Forest’s game announcer.
“We’ve also licensed tapes of Jon’s games to intercut with scenes shot in Wake Forest’s stadium for a heightened sense of realism,” said Bieber.
“Quarter” is the latest star turn for “Final Destination 3” star Merriman. Quinn will star in “Wild Child,” and MacDowell will next be seen in the indie comedy “The Six Wives of Henry Lefay.”
Here’s another description of the Wake Forest football movie:
The lead roles have been cast for the independent film The 5th Quarter, which will start filming in Winston-Salem on Oct. 16.
The film will follow the 2006 championship football season at Wake Forest. It focuses on the story of Jon Abbate, a linebacker who devoted the season to the memory of his younger brother Luke, who was killed in a car wreck.
Ryan Merriman will play Jon Abbate, and Aidan Quinn will play his father, Steven. Andie MacDowell is in final negotiations to play his mother, Maryanne.
Merriman’s films include The Ring Two and Final Destination 3. In 2005, he filmed the movie Home of the Giants in the Triad. He most recently appeared in the miniseries Comanche Moon.
Quinn has appeared in such movies as Legends of the Fall, Avalon and Practical Magic. MacDowell’s film credits include Four Weddings and a Funeral and Groundhog Day. She was also the recipient of the RiverRun International Film Festival’s “Master of Cinema” award in 2003. She lives in Asheville.