Josh Duhamel was filming a scene for the new action-rom comedy “Shotgun Wedding,” in which his fiancée, played by Jennifer Lopez, throws grenades in the air. Hit it, and the bad guys will explode and launch rainbow-colored fireworks.
“I was like, holy[expletive]this movie is silly,” said Duhamel.
Directed by Jason Moore, the film starts out like your usual romantic comedy. Darcy of Lopez and Tom of Duhamel have a grand wedding on an island. It has funny and awkward family dynamics, and even features a charismatic ex-boyfriend. And Darcy and Tom find themselves fighting and trying to call off the wedding moment before walking down the aisle. A band of gun-armed pirates then arrives and takes the wedding party hostage.
Producing and starring, Lopez joined Mark Hammer’s script through his producing partner, Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas.
“She’s kind of a career designer,” Lopez said. “We really think about what the audience enjoys and what the world needs at different times, not just what we want to do. I do that even with what I want to send.”
“Shotgun Wedding,” which streamed Friday on Prime Video, not only mashed up fun genres in a sophisticated package, but Lopez said her character was “older” and married for the first time, and Tom was “groomzilla.” is obsessed with Fete’s planning details and logistics.
She said, “We had to make things that people don’t think of as conventional and normal as normal and acceptable.”
The film didn’t necessarily sell poorly for those involved. From Cheech Marin, who plays Darcy’s billionaire father, to Jennifer Coolidge, who plays Tom’s very ordinary Midwestern mother, everyone has basically heard “Jennifer Lopez” and “The Dominican Republic Shooting.” and signed up.
“It was an interesting script,” said Coolidge. “We had the table read to us first, and I remember reading a very good table. I remember thinking, ‘Oh my God, this is going to be really fun.'”
There was a problem before they got to the island. Armie Hammer was originally set to play Tom, but he walked away from the project after cheating allegations surfaced, which he denies.They took him two weeks to prepare. , had to recast its pivotal role. A Broadway veteran, Moore never panicked.
“There are always moments when you have to continue your understudy,” said Moore. “It always works…. There were a few days of ‘Oh Boy’ and more great things came out.”
Duhamel was on Moore’s shortlist and had been friendly with Lopez for years.
“He’s an incredibly handsome 1940s movie star who isn’t afraid to look defenseless and silly,” said Moore. Duhamel and Lopez talked about his Zoom and decided to give it a try.
“You really need some kind of chemistry,” Lopez said. “This wasn’t just rom-com chemistry. It’s about trusting each other, doing the action, doing the stunts, and even broader comedy. There was a lot.”
“It was better than I imagined,” added Lopez. “We were just on the same wavelength.”
Coolidge also approved.
“They are so much fun to watch,” says Coolidge. “Look, you want to see everything…you want to see them get together. You’re attracted to both people and you see them attracted to each other.”
But, of course, the pirates interrupt some of that, and also instantly force the wedding guests to stand in the pool as hostages while trying to find the fighting bride and groom. along with it took a lot of time to be partially submerged.
“I probably shouldn’t say this, but I didn’t change the water during the whole shoot,” says Coolidge.
Darcy Carden, who plays Marin’s new and much younger girlfriend, said those 20 days were a little humble.
Malin and Steve Coulter, who played Coolidge’s husband, even took a nap next to each other in soaking wetsuits.
But aside from being soaked in shoes for two weeks, Carden said it was “as dreamy a situation as you can be.”
Many of the cast lived together in a huge house and hung out together most nights, creating a family-like atmosphere on set.
“It was like a weird movie dorm,” Duhamel said. “But there is a spa and hot tub, pool and beach.”
Lenny Kravitz, as Darcy’s ex-boyfriend, jumps in (by helicopter) and disrupts things.
Kravitz, a longtime friend of Lopez’s, said, “He’s kind of a silly version of what people think I am, just an expanded version of it.
Moore wanted the film to look “big, with James Bond looks”. Action rom-coms can look small,” he said.
And everyone was impressed with Lopez not playing the role of a “movie star” on set. During a day of filming scenes in a small boat in open water, Lopez went into producer mode and decided she didn’t need an extra boat to have her make-up crew with her. I was able to put on makeup. And she nailed it, Moore said.
“She’s a mogul, a producer, a storyteller, an actress, a singer, and a great physical comedian,” said Moore. “She has discipline and she has artistic finesse which is a great combination. She can really do anything.”
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Follow AP Film Writer Lindsey Burr: www.twitter.com/ldbahr.
