HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — Based on the cult D.C. Comics graphic novels by Warren Ellis and Cully Hamner, Red is an explosive action-comedy starring Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman, John Malkovich and Helen Mirren.
Frank (Willis), Joe (Freeman), Marvin (Malkovich) and Victoria (Mirren) used to be the CIA's top agents - but the secrets they know just made them the Agency's top targets. Now framed for assassination, they must use all of their collective cunning, experience and teamwork to stay one step ahead of their deadly pursuers and stay alive. To stop the operation, the team embarks on an impossible, cross-country mission to break into the top-secret CIA headquarters, where they will uncover one of the biggest conspiracies and cover-ups in government history.
The cast list of Red reads like a who's who of esteemed actors from stage, film and television, from living legend Ernest Borgnine to rising star Karl Urban.
"To say that this movie is a character-driven piece would be a major understatement," says the film's executive producer Mark Vahradian, laughing. "Twelve principal actors in one ensemble for a movie is not a common occurrence these days. Creatively-speaking we had to find a group that simply could 'pull it off' and logistically-speaking it was a challenge when trying to put together a shooting schedule that involved so many actors' personal and professional schedules as well."
Freeman admits he never could have imagined or predicted being part of such a stellar cast.
"Clearly I knew I'd be working with Bruce again," says Freeman, referencing the 2006 film, Lucky Number Slevin, "and he and I always have a lot of fun on the set. But I didn't know I was going to get a shot at working with Helen Mirren, John Malkovich, Mary-Louise Parker and Richard Dreyfuss, too. I mean there is nothing better than getting to work with people you greatly admire...people who have 'the chops' as they say in the music business...people who bring it to the table every day. Nobody was shucking and jiving on this show. Everybody was playing their A-game."
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