Tom Pelphrey, fresh off his buzz-worthy run on Netflix’s hit Ozark, will star as real-life conman Jason Derek Brown in American Murderer, a new film produced by The Traveling Picture Show Company and GiGi Films.
Tom Pelphrey and Ryan Phillippe Face Off
Ryan Phillippe, who earned some headlines of his own recently for his role on ABC’s breakout hit Big Sky, also plays the FBI agent tasked to hunt Brown down.
According to Variety, Broadway star Idina Menzel (Rent, Frozen) and Academy Award nominee Jacki Weaver have also been cast in the film, which will be written and directed by Matthew Gentile.
Although Pelphrey and Phillippe have never acted together before, they can bond over their daytime pasts, as a two-time Daytime Emmy winner Pelphrey appeared as Jonathan Randall on Guiding Light and Mick Dante on As the World Turns, while Phillippe got his start as One Life to Live’s Billy Douglas. Both have gone on to impressive film and TV careers.
American Murderer tells the true story of charismatic conman Brown, known for bankrolling his luxurious lifestyle through well-thought-out scams. With money running low, and his past catching up to him, Brown plans his biggest con yet, and by doing so, lands on the FBI’s Top 10 list.
In real life, Brown remains a fugitive, wanted for first-degree murder and armed robbery in Phoenix for allegedly shooting and killing an armored car guard outside a movie theater in 2004 and fleeing with the money. The indie will shoot in Salt Lake City in 2021.
Pelphrey recently was part of Variety’s 10 Actors to Watch for 2020 and can currently be seen in David Fincher’s Mank, where he plays Joe Mankiewicz to Gary Oldman’s Herman Mankiewicz, on Netflix. He’s also been cast alongside Josh Brolin in the series Outer Range. Phillippe can next be seen in Justin Long’s directorial feature, Lady of the Manor. Patrick Duffy of Dallas fame also has a role.
Share this: