Living up to his promise to cast “recognizable unknowns” for his upcoming film “Red State,” Kevin Smith announced at Comic-Con that Michael Parks has signed on for the film.
Parks is a veteran of the Tarantino/Rodriguez universe having played Texas Ranger Earl McGraw in “From Dusk Til Dawn,” “Kill Bill Vol. 1,” “Death Proof” and “Planet Terror.” It’s probably safe to say that Parks has the lead role in “Red State,” a horror film film (kind of) about which little is known other than it is loosely based on Fred Phelps, the reverend of the hateful Westboro Baptist Church.
Earlier this month Smith revealed that time time around for “Red State,” which is supposed to go in front of cameras in August, he’s going to keep things on the down low as much as possible. “This time I’m just trying to just do it differently where I’m like ‘lets kind of quietly make the movie and see what happens.’ You know, let everyone know when it’s done.” So, will Smith be able to keep off his Twitter account, blog and wherever else for the duration of the shoot? Yeah, we somehow doubt that, but good luck.
As for his Sean William Scott-led hockey comedy “Hit Somebody,” Smith is still writing the film, last reporting he was on about page 81. Can’t say we’ve been too interested in anything Smith has done in years, but a shift into a brand new genre could be the right change of pace for the director.