Bateman fills out cast of his directing debut.
Production has commenced on the indie dark comedy, ‘Bad Words,’ which marks the directorial debut of actor Jason Bateman (‘Arrested Development,’ ‘Horrible Bosses’).
Joining Bateman in the film are Allison Janney (‘The Help,’ ‘Juno’), Kathryn Hahn (‘Our Idiot Brother,’ ‘How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days’), Ben Falcone (‘Bridesmaids,’ ‘What To Expect When Your Expecting’), Philip Baker Hall (‘Argo,’ ‘Magnolia’), and Rohan Chandz (‘Jack and Jill’).
Written by Andrew Dodge, the Black List script revolves around 41-year-old high school drop out Guy Trilby (Bateman), who discovers a loophole that allows him to enter The National Quill Spelling Bee. Designed for 8th Grade children or below, Guy’s entry draws vehement protest and outrage of parents and the organization’s director Dr. Bernice Deagan (Janney). Despite having no formal education, Guy quickly advances to the nationals where he meets contestant hopeful Chaitanya (Chandz), a completely awkward young boy who is unfazed by Guy’s brash and ill-mannered ways.
As the competition weekend progresses, Guy teaches Chaitanya some dark comedic life lessons and the pair begin to form an unlikely friendship, which doesn’t go unnoticed by Jenny (Hahn), a reporter who has agreed to fund Guy’s competition and travel expenses in exchange for his exclusive story. With a long list of detractors and distractions that threaten to derail Guy from the competition, he must find a way to stay focused on his true mission and compete for what he so badly wants to win.