If you’re a casual film fan, you may not immediately know the name, Tom Shadyac. However, you are probably very familiar with his work. Shadyac is the director behind such comedy films as “Ace Venture: Pet Detective,” “Liar, Liar,” “The Nutty Professor,” “Patch Adams,” and “Bruce Almighty.” And now, after years away from feature filmmaking, he’s back with a film about the true story of a young Black kid who gets wrongfully locked away in prison, derailing his pro football career. Wait, what?
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In the new trailer for “Brian Banks,” we see that the film tells the true story of the titular man, who has been in prison for over a decade and is working to clear his name and seek his release. With the help of a group of individuals on the outside from the California Innocence Project, Banks hopes to get out of jail and continue his life as a potential NFL star. The film is definitely an odd choice from the man who basically made Jim Carrey into one of the biggest comedic stars on the planet. But hey, we’ll give it a shot.
The film stars Aldis Hodge, Greg Kinnear, Sherri Shepherd, and Melanie Liburd. As mentioned, Shadyac directs the film, based on the script from Doug Atchison.
“Brian Banks” hits theaters on August 9.
Here’s the synopsis:
The inspirational true story of Brian Banks (Aldis Hodge), an All-American high school football star committed to USC who finds his life upended when he is wrongly convicted of a crime he didn’t commit. Despite lack of evidence, Banks is railroaded through a broken justice system and sentenced to a decade of prison and probation. Years later, with the support of Justin Brooks (Greg Kinnear) and the California Innocence Project, Banks fights to reclaim his life and fulfill his dreams of playing in the NFL.