5e1af38f-MACGRUBER Production Notes APPROVED · has the right answer for ... able to keep a...
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Production Information
Only one American hero has earned the rank of Green Beret, Navy SEAL and
Army Ranger. Just one operative has been awarded 16 purple hearts, 3 Congressional
Medals of Honor and 7 presidential medals of bravery. And only one guy is man enough
to still sport a mullet.
In 2010, WILL FORTE (Baby Mama, The Brothers Solomon) brings Saturday
Night Live’s clueless soldier of fortune to the big screen in the action-comedy
MacGruber.
In the 10 years since his fiancée, Casey (MAYA RUDOLPH of Away We Go,
television’s SNL), was killed, special op MacGruber has sworn off a life of fighting crime
with his bare hands and become a man of peace. But when his former commanding
officer, Colonel Faith (POWERS BOOTHE of Sin City, television’s 24), tells him that his
country needs him to find a nuclear warhead that’s been stolen by his sworn enemy, black
market arms dealer Dieter Von Cunth (VAL KILMER of Kiss Kiss Bang Bang,
Tombstone), MacGruber figures he’s the only one tough enough for the job.
Assembling an elite team of experts—Lt. Dixon Piper (RYAN PHILLIPPE of
Crash, Flags of Our Fathers) and Vicki St. Elmo (KRISTEN WIIG of Knocked Up,
Whip It)—MacGruber will navigate an army of assassins to hunt down Cunth and bring
him to justice. His methods may be unorthodox. His crime scenes may get messy. But
if you want the world saved right, you call in MacGruber.
Making his feature film directorial debut with the action-comedy is SNL
writer/director JORMA TACCONE. He is joined in screenwriting duties by Will Forte
and JOHN SOLOMON (television’s SNL, Extreme Movie). Saturday Night Live creator
LORNE MICHAELS (Baby Mama, Mean Girls) produces the film with JOHN
GOLDWYN (Baby Mama, television’s Dexter).
MacGruber—Production Information 2
Leading MacGruber’s behind-the-scenes team are director of photography
BRANDON TROST (Crank: High Voltage, In Good Company), production designer
ROBB WILSON-KING (Just Friends, Scary Movie), editor JAMIE GROSS (Role
Models, television’s Wainy Days) and costume designer SUSANNA PUISTO (Dark
Country, Cleaner).
Relativity Media’s RYAN KAVANAUGH and TUCKER TOOLEY, as well as
Taccone’s fellow SNL colleagues AKIVA SCHAFFER, SETH MEYERS and ERIN
DAVID serve as the action-comedy’s executive producers.
ABOUT THE PRODUCTION
A Dead Man With a Mission:
MacGruber is Greenlit
Will Forte’s mullet-sporting, gadget-savvy action hero was introduced to
Saturday Night Live audiences several years ago and quickly became a fan favorite.
“MacGruber was a pitch I had at SNL that has morphed into this character with a lot of
problems,” writer/director Jorma Taccone explains. “He’s very insecure and very bull-
headed. We’ve done a number of these sketches on the show, which are always in three
parts, and it’s usually MacGruber getting worse and worse at his job in some way. He
either becomes more and more of an alcoholic, more of a closet racist or has just lost all
his money in the stock market. He’s a real American hero...with issues.”
The character was slated to star in a feature film almost immediately after
appearing in a national television commercial in February 2009. SNL creator Lorne
Michaels offers: “MacGruber has always been popular on the show. The commercial we
did for the Super Bowl got a great reaction, and we decided to make a movie based on the
character.”
The SNL veteran and his fellow producer, John Goldwyn, joined forces with Ryan
Kavanaugh’s Relativity Media to assemble the creative team and develop the feature-
length film. Michaels shares that the team’s rationale for creating the MacGruber movie
was a simple one: to make people laugh. “There’s a certain kind of movie that has no
MacGruber—Production Information 3
other reason to exist other than it’s funny,” he reflects. “I’ve never been bashful about
how much I like that kind of movie. It’s like a confection. When you want it, you want
it.”
The MacGruber script became a collaborative effort by Forte and two of his SNL
co-writers, Taccone and John Solomon. “When Lorne first got excited about trying to
make a movie about MacGruber, we thought, ‘Are you crazy?’” laughs Forte. “This is a
60-second sketch on SNL that ends in an explosion every time. And then we said, ‘We’d
be crazy not to think about it,’ and we started coming up with fun ideas.”
Forte says that finding time to focus on the screenplay was tough during the
weekly sketch comedy’s grueling rehearsals and shoots. “The SNL schedule is physically
and mentally draining,” he explains. “We were writing every spare second that we had.
The easiest part was that Jorma and John are two of my closest friends. As long as one
person had good ideas one day, that took the pressure off the other two. It was a pretty
awesome experience to get to share with two of your best buddies.”
“We love ’80s action movies,” adds writer John Solomon, “so it was easy to start
with MacGruber being out of the game…and then having him get back into it. We were
very lucky that Jorma is also a performer. He’s good with actors, and he’s also very
creative and visual.”
Of the opportunity to turn an SNL sketch into a feature, Solomon says he
welcomed the chance to create a multidimensional story. “MacGruber is a very insecure
person,” Solomon adds. “We had the chance to make the story bigger and richer than
what you’d normally see in a three-minute sketch. Plus, making an R-rated movie gave
us an opportunity to have more violence…and add a little sex.”
SNL has a staff of approximately 20 writers who work each week to create 45-50
set pieces that are whittled down to less than a dozen by 11:30 p.m. on Saturday night.
The three men working on MacGruber, however, had a much smaller writing team as
they created the feature’s screenplay. In a world where it can sometimes take years to
make a film, the project went from conception to shooting in less than six months; it was
shot during the team’s hiatus from SNL.
“This is a group of people who understand that time is their enemy and that there
is a limitation to the amount of time you get to do anything,” producer Goldwyn shares.
MacGruber—Production Information 4
“With SNL, you start with a blank page on Monday and you’re on air on Saturday, so you
have to think fast. There’s no mediocrity. The best idea survives and there’s no room for
anybody to get hurt feelings because their ideas didn’t make it into the show…or for
people to have too much time to over think things.
“Speed generates a certain efficiency,” Goldwyn continues. “It keeps
performances fresh and people on their toes. It can create something really exciting on
film that you might not otherwise get.” The producer believes that this environment
helped his cast and crew to perform well beyond expectations. “We were blessed that the
performers at the center of the movie had all worked together for so long and so
successfully. And with Jorma, there was a confidence with him as a new film director.
They just hit the ground running.”
As the three friends developed the screenplay, they kept true to their love of
action films. Offers the director: “We were huge fans of late ’80s/early ’90s action
movies like Die Hard, Lethal Weapon and Rambo III. We knew that we wanted to make
the film in that style, more out of love than anything else.”
According to Taccone, a leaner production inspired even more creativity on the
set, in every aspect of this production. “We had to think on our feet,” he says. “At SNL,
we have a huge warehouse of props. You can literally say, ‘I need a giant inflatable
carrot and a donkey head,’ and they appear 15 minutes later. It was much harder in New
Mexico where our prop guys did an amazing job, but we had to improvise because we
didn’t have the resources at hand. We were coming up with jokes on the fly, and we had
to reshape ideas based on what we had to work with; that made it very exciting.”
Operatives and Goons:
Casting the Action-Comedy
Will Forte knew it wouldn’t be simple to play a former Green Beret, Navy SEAL
and Army Ranger who fights crimes with his bare hands, but the performer was game for
the challenge. He explains that the filmic version of MacGruber keeps basically the
same character as in his sketch version, but the audience will be introduced to more of the
MacGruber—Production Information 5
hapless super soldier’s life. “He’s the same boob,” Forte laughs. “MacGruber thinks he
has the right answer for everything, and quite often, he doesn’t.”
Of Forte’s ability to blend comic timing with action, Taccone compliments: “Will
is an amazing comedy machine. He gives 150 percent to every single take. He will work
until he is nearly dead. At four in the morning, he’ll be screaming, putting energy into
every shot.”
Goldwyn agrees with the director on the star’s enthusiasm and talents. “Will has
such a complete commitment to this part and to everything that is MacGruber and all of
his craziness,” he says. “There is a fearlessness that enters into it that’s exciting to watch
and hilariously funny. There is always the element of the unpredictable, and that’s what
makes MacGruber so exciting and fun.”
Even though the Groundlings-trained comedian has been improvising for years,
Forte still found it difficult to keep in character on set with so many of his SNL cohorts
standing nearby. “There were so many funny people around me,” he offers. “I was only
able to keep a straight face because I was always concentrating on not blowing my lines.
It gets very hard with Kristen Wiig. She’s as funny as they come.”
A veteran of both small and big screen, Wiig made her big screen debut in Judd
Apatow’s smash-hit Knocked Up, and she moved on to co-star in several more films,
including Adventureland and Whip It. On SNL, she is known for characters such as the
one-upping Penelope, impish Gilly and acerbic Judy Grimes, as well as her spot-on
impressions of Suze Orman and Nancy Pelosi. In MacGruber, she reprises her role as the
crime fighter’s often imperiled comrade, Vicki St. Elmo.
“I have always loved being in sketches with Forte,” notes Wiig, “so to get to do
an entire movie with him was beyond fantastic.” Wiig says she enjoyed seeing many of
the familiar SNL faces on the set, including Taccone. “Jorma did a great job,” she
commends. “It was really nice having a family out there, especially on a movie set in the
middle of Albuquerque.”
For the role of the soft-spoken operative who has both a subtle singing voice and
a phenomenal backspin kick, Wiig donned an ’80s-style wig and period-appropriate
makeup. As Vicki St. Elmo, a woman whose life is now her music, she has given up her
life of crime fighting and has been silently pining for the man she believed died 10 years
MacGruber—Production Information 6
earlier. Of her character, Wiig laughs: “Vicki’s got her own style. You don’t see a lot of
those hairstyles walking around…or the blue eye shadow.”
Ryan Phillippe, Val Kilmer and Powers Boothe were cast in pivotal roles opposite
Kristin Wiig and Will Forte in the action-comedy. “They provide the context for
MacGruber,” Goldwyn explains. “They are the characters that give MacGruber
legitimacy, because they’re the real people to his unbelievable character.”
Goldwyn explains the process by which Phillippe and Kilmer joined the
production. “We needed to get together a legitimate cast for the read-through,” he says.
“We wanted to make sure that reps from the studio walked into a room with all people
that they recognized. We already had Will, and then we had to fill out the table. Casting
agent SHEILA JAFFE pulled together a table reading. She had the idea of Ryan and Val.
Jorma, Will and John were so impressed with the quality of the work that those two did at
the table reading that they asked them to be in the movie. It was very lucky for us,
because they both said yes.”
Lorne Michaels agrees that he knew immediately that Kilmer was right for the
role of the megalomaniac (and MacGruber’s former best friend) Cunth. “Val did SNL
years ago and was really funny,” Michaels recalls. “This is a villain part, but it needed to
be played lightly. He came in and killed it. Val was the first and only person we went
after.”
“It was the funniest read-through I’d ever been to,” offers Kilmer. “Will was
ridiculous. I actually spat out my coffee twice during the session, he was so outrageous.
The whole gang, Jorma and everyone, has a kindness about them that’s infectious. You
just want to be around them.”
Kilmer read his character as deliciously evil, but still quite petty. “Cunth could
have done anything he wanted to MacGruber,” the actor explains. “He finally had him
captured, but he’d rather get in his face, like on a playground, and try to make him squirm
over something trivial.”
Ryan Phillippe was recruited for the role of Lieutenant Dixon Piper, who works
with MacGruber to bring Cunth down. After MacGruber begrudgingly lets Piper join the
team, the soldier spends much of his time barely tolerating MacGruber and shaking his
MacGruber—Production Information 7
head in different iterations of disgust at his unorthodox methods…such as strategically
placed celery and sleights of hand that never quite work.
Known primarily for his appearances in dramas and thrillers, Phillippe was
excited to become a part of this action-comedy. “In most of my films, I have a lot more
anguish,” he laughs. “I thought it would be so much fun to do something where I got to
laugh from morning until night. From the time I was 11, I’ve seen almost every episode
of SNL, and I am a huge fan of Will’s and Kristen’s. They’re both just comic geniuses.”
As this style of comedy was relatively new to Phillippe, he had many challenges
on set. “I just tried not to break,” he says. “I’ve never had to deal with having an
incredibly funny person right in your face, saying the most ridiculous things as you try to
keep yourself composed.” The actor admits he has an indentation from digging his
thumbnail into his finger to stop from breaking up. “When Will did what was on the
page, I could prepare myself for it,” Phillippe remembers. “But when he deviated and
improv’d, you never knew what was going to come out of his mouth.”
Veteran performer Powers Boothe portrays Piper’s boss, Colonel Faith, the man
responsible for tracking down MacGruber and re-enlisting him in the fight to save the
world from the evil Cunth. Boothe says that, like Phillippe, he is usually cast in dramas;
for this film, he enjoyed letting loose and having fun on screen. “It was a personal
triumph that these Saturday Night Live guys picked me,” he says. “It was so exciting
because these guys are young and smart and into a world of creativity. It was sensational
for me to share that with them.”
As Boothe and Kilmer had worked together years ago on Tombstone, the project
gave the actor the chance to reunite with an old friend. “Val is just brilliant,” Boothe
compliments. “People going to see MacGruber who are expecting to see skits from
Saturday Night Live are going to be in for a huge surprise. The audience will get
involved with it and excited while they’re laughing.”
Also appearing in the film is another longtime SNL player, actress Maya Rudolph.
As MacGruber’s late fiancée (and Vicki’s best friend), Casey guides MacGruber back to
reality. The team agreed that, together, Rudolph and Forte created some of the most
memorable moments in the film.
MacGruber—Production Information 8
“We wanted to get Maya in here as well because she was our original Casey on
SNL,” explains Taccone. “Fun fact: the original sketch characters were called K-Ci &
JoJo. I was a big fan of late ’90s R&B, and the group K-Ci & JoJo inspired these
names.”
When casting former members of Mac’s elite team, whom he tries to bring back
together for another mission, Taccone and the producers approached some of the
superstars of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).
The men asked to come aboard the production were CHRIS JERICHO as M-16
wielding assassin Frank Korver; “BIG SHOW” (aka Paul Wight) as mechanic Brick
Hughes, MARK HENRY as Tut Beemer, the flashy “MVP” (MONTEL VONTAVIOUS
PORTER) as grenade-specialist Tug Phelps, KANE (aka “The Big Red Monster”) as
eagle-eye marksman Tanker Lutz and “THE GREAT KHALI,” currently the tallest
WWE superstar (coming in at 7’ 3” and 420 lbs.), as welder Vernon Freedom.
Longtime SNL fan Jericho, known in the ring as Y2J, was quick to sign up for the
job. When asked about his entry into the project, he tells: “I said, ‘Sure. What time and
what boxing gym in Albuquerque?’” The performer relates that both he and Forte had
something else in common: they are both former members of the famous L.A. improv
group called the Groundlings (as were Wiig and Rudolph). “Suddenly, we had a nice run
of jokes going through our scene that we just came up with on the spot.”
For the members of the WWE, the improv that Taccone encouraged on set wasn’t
all that different from the world to which they were accustomed. “Being in the WWE is
like show business boot camp,” says Jericho. “You learn a little bit of everything: drama,
action, adventure, comedy. Everybody who works in the WWE is very able to adapt to
any situation and can really fit in.”
Other members of the pro wrestling organization who portray MacGruber’s dream
team joined Jericho to help bring Cunth to justice. Known in the ring as “The World’s
Largest Athlete,” Big Show (aka Paul Wight), stands 7 feet tall, weighs 440 lbs and
sports a 64” chest. As the wrestler has feet that are an unbelievable size 22 EEEEE,
finding shoes for Wight posed a bit of a challenge for costume designer Susanna Puisto.
Wight believes that working on the film with Taccone was, in certain ways, much
easier than his time with the WWE. “In film, they take a lot of time to prep with different
MacGruber—Production Information 9
camera angles,” Wight says. “You tell people where to go and what to do. At WWE, we
show up, Vince might hand me a promo five minutes before I walk out of the curtain and
I’m supposed to know it.”
“Hot as Hell, MacGruber!”:
Design and Locations
MacGruber was shot in the heat of Albuquerque, New Mexico with a tight
shooting schedule of just 28 days. Production designer Robb Wilson-King and his team
had their work cut out for them every day, with much, according to King, “creative
problem solving” happening at every turn.
Although they’ve been friends for a long time, Forte admits that he wasn’t sure of
the look that Taccone had in store for the film. While the audience is used to seeing the
SNL cast in a sketch with three walls, Forte reflects, “This movie looks like a big-budget
action movie. It’s all because of Jorma and DP Brandon Trost.”
Location scouts were extremely busy during pre-production as they kept everyone
on the move to search for ideal locales. “We needed a lonely Russian road where a
convoy of military transports would be brutally held up,” explains Wilson. “We also
needed a South American monastery where MacGruber, deep in prayer and meditation,
would be called back into action. There was that sea cliff wedding location to deal with;
the Pentagon; a Washington, D.C., suburban house; a D.C. urban coffee shop; and more.”
The crew joked that because of the many locations required, Wilson-King needed a fresh
location scout every few hours.
Forte had costuming issues of his own as the cast and crew baked in the hot
Albuquerque sun. “This was supposed to be the ’90s, and I had to wear a long-sleeve
undershirt, flannel shirt and a vest every day…then I had to wear a wig. It got very hot.”
The first day of filming took place at a huge gypsum mine located on the Zia
Pueblo. North of Albuquerque, this served as the setting for the film’s Russian road, the
place where Cunth’s men do their dastardly deeds. Designed for moving enormous mine
machinery, the wide road had no vegetation and offered shallow ponds of water that
provided visual interest for the director and DP.
MacGruber—Production Information 10
The crew drove before sunrise into an overly lit base camp and found white dust
covering everything in sight. As the sun rose, it revealed the smoking Russian military
trucks, scattered dead soldiers, Cunth and his tattooed bad guys, as well as a huge truck
carrying the deadly nuclear missile. The next day took cast and crew to the “monastery”
set, which was actually El Rancho de las Golondrinas near Santa Fe—a museum that
includes buildings dating back to the early 1700s.
The Pentagon, where Colonel Faith holds tense briefings, was a combination of
the old marble-walled Bernalillo courthouse and the Emergency Operations Center,
operated by FEMA, the state of New Mexico and the city of Albuquerque. This high-
tech command center had never been used for filming, and King and his team were
thrilled to receive approvals for the shoot.
The location for Dieter Von Cunth’s compound was actually a power plant owned
by the Public Utility of New Mexico (PNM). Generously, Malcolm Long of PNM
allowed the crew to build a mock missile on top of one of the older generators. King and
his construction crew spent weeks creating the sets within the power plant, and the
neighbors surrounding the plant were kind enough to put up with the explosions and
gunfire that occurred during night filming.
The Las Vegas club scenes in which MacGruber confronts his nemesis were shot
at the Isleta Casino & Resort, a beautiful new casino and club in the area. Next up, the
D.C. coffee shop in which Vicki (dressed as MacGruber) goes ballistic was lensed in the
popular Gold Street Caffè in downtown Albuquerque.
King and his team had scouted the Albuquerque Botanic Garden for other films,
but this time they discovered a Japanese garden hidden at the back of the property—the
perfect spot to shoot the film’s signature wedding.
The spectacular van explosion, in which MacGruber realizes his old crew may not
be able to make it to the next mission, took place at the Albuquerque airport. The
production team posted signs along the nearby freeway in both directions to warn people
that pyrotechnics were being deployed. The crew didn’t want emergency services
swamped with hundreds of phone calls about a plane crash…especially since there were
fake body parts littering a runway.
MacGruber—Production Information 11
“We were shooting digital, and at warp speed,” explains producer Michaels. “The
level of production is as good as anything I’ve ever worked on. There’s also something
special about how the picture looks, because of the light in Albuquerque and because of
all the amazing locations we were able to find.”
Two-by-Fours and AK-47s:
Stunt Work
In many an action-comedy, at some point, someone will take a board to the head.
Will Forte actually did a couple of his own stunts and accidentally collided with a
stuntman more than once. “I felt so bad,” he says. “For the fight scene with Val, I did
the fight with a stunt guy. There were a bunch of elbows thrown. During that sequence,
I elbowed the guy in the face. Of course, he’s a stunt guy, so he said, ‘Oh, it’s all right.
I’m cool. I’m fine.’
“About 10 minutes later, I was supposed to hit him with a two-by-four,” Forte
continues. “The two-by-four is actually a hard piece of plastic, and I accidentally hit him
in the face again. It looked real on camera…because it was! Again, I said, ‘Oh, my God,
I’m so sorry. I hit you in the face with the board. He said, ‘Oh, no, no. No, you didn’t.’
These guys are just bad asses. They make us look very good. The stuntmen were put
through a very tough schedule and worked long hours while still keeping positive
outlooks.”
While he had every intention of staying behind the camera, Taccone eventually
got in on the action himself. “I didn’t want to be in the movie at all,” he laughs. “I just
thought it was enough to try to direct for the first time, but I got so excited about a big
shoot-out. We were downstairs in a building at about four in the morning, and I said, ‘I
have to gear up. I’ve got to shoot an AK-47!’ I had never shot a gun before, and getting
to shoot automatic weapons is pretty fantastic. So you will get to see my childlike,
mustachioed face in the background shooting an AK in this movie.”
****
Rogue Presents A Relativity Media/Michaels-Goldwyn Production: MacGruber,
starring Will Forte, Kristen Wiig, Ryan Phillippe, Powers Boothe, Maya Rudolph and
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Val Kilmer. The casting is by Sheila Jaffe, CSA, and the costume designer is Susanna
Puisto. MacGruber’s music is composed by Matthew Compton, and the music
supervisors are Happy Walters and Season Kent. The film’s editor is Jamie Gross, and
the production designer is Robb Wilson-King. MacGruber’s director of photography is
Brandon Trost, and its line producer is Patty Long. The action-comedy’s co-producer is
Kenneth Halsband, and its executive producers are Ryan Kavanaugh, Tucker Tooley,
Akiva Schaffer, Seth Meyers, Erin David. MacGruber is produced by Lorne Michaels,
John Goldwyn. The film is written by Will Forte & John Solomon & Jorma Taccone,
and it is directed by Jorma Taccone. © 2010 Universal Studios
www.iamrogue.com/macgruber
ABOUT THE CAST
WILL FORTE (MacGruber/Written by) has established himself as one of the
most versatile comedy actors in film and television. He recently began his eighth season
on Saturday Night Live. Forte also recently completed the comedy A Good Old
Fashioned Orgy for Endgame Entertainment, in which he co-stars opposite Jason
Sudeikis. He was most recently seen in Brief Interviews With Hideous Men, written and
directed by John Krasinski, and lent his voice to Sony Pictures’ hit animated film Cloudy
With a Chance of Meatballs.
During his time at SNL, Forte has produced many memorable sketches. He has
showcased his singing talents as an unhinged “Fly High Duluth” bandleader with a
penchant for chugging Jack Daniel’s. He’s created lasting characters in The Falconer—
the once-successful executive who has mysteriously chosen to live in the woods with his
faithful falcon Donald—and the very soft-spoken politician Tim Calhoun, as well as the
creepily naïve office worker, Neil, whose ventures outside of work with colleague Jean
quickly turn perverse. Forte has also brought life to MacGruber, the resourceful-albeit-
distractible man who can disarm a bomb with just about anything.
Forte wrote and starred in the feature The Brothers Solomon, opposite Will Arnett
and SNL cast mate Kristen Wiig. His additional film credits include Baby Mama, The
Slammin’ Salmon and Beerfest.
MacGruber—Production Information 13
Forte recently had very memorable guest-starring roles on the hit comedies How I
Met Your Mother, NBC’s award-winning 30 Rock, Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great
Job! and on HBO’s The Flight of the Conchords. He also lent his voice to a handful of
animated series including FOX’s The Cleveland Show, from creator Seth MacFarlane,
and FOX’s recent animated sitcom Sit Down Shut Up, from creator Mitchell Hurwitz, as
well as MTV’s Clone High.
Forte came to SNL from Los Angeles’ improv-sketch theater The Groundlings,
where SNL alum Chris Parnell and former cast mate Maya Rudolph got their start. Forte
has a great deal of experience behind the camera, serving as a producer on That ’70s
Show and as a story editor for 3rd Rock From the Sun and Action, as well as working as a
writer for Late Show With David Letterman and the MTV Movie Awards.
Forte currently divides his time between New York and Los Angeles.
A comedic star born from the Saturday Night Live stage, KRISTEN WIIG
(Vicki St. Elmo) has become one of the most sought-after talents in film and television
today. Wiig recently earned her first Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting
Actress in a Comedy Series for her incredible work playing such memorable characters
as the excitable Target clerk, the hilarious one-upper Penelope, House Speaker Nancy
Pelosi and Suze Orman, among others.
Wiig’s upcoming films include Greg Mottola’s Paul, co-starring Simon Pegg, and
her first dramatic role, Andrew Jarecki’s All Good Things, opposite Ryan Gosling,
Kirsten Dunst and Frank Langella. She also contributed her voice to the recently released
animated feature film How to Train Your Dragon, starring Gerard Butler and Jay
Baruchel for DreamWorks Animation, and the upcoming film Despicable Me, starring
Steve Carell and Jason Segel for Illumination Entertainment and Universal Pictures.
Wiig made her big-screen debut to universal high praise as Katherine Heigl’s
passive-aggressive boss in Judd Apatow’s smash-hit comedy Knocked Up. Her
additional film credits include Mike Judge’s Extract, with Jason Bateman, Ben Affleck
and Mila Kunis; Drew Barrymore’s directorial debut Whip It, starring Ellen Page; Greg
Mottola’s Adventureland, with Ryan Reynolds, Kristen Stewart and Jesse Eisenberg;
David Koepp’s Ghost Town, with Ricky Gervais; and Jake Kasdan’s Walk Hard: The
MacGruber—Production Information 14
Dewey Cox Story, another Apatow-produced film in which she starred opposite John C.
Reilly.
A native of Rochester, New York, Wiig worked as a main company member of
the Los Angeles-based improv/sketch comedy troupe The Groundlings. As a
Groundlings alumna, she joins the ranks of such SNL cast mates as Maya Rudolph, Will
Ferrell, Phil Hartman and Jon Lovitz.
Wiig lives in New York City.
As an actor, producer and writer, RYAN PHILLIPPE (Lieutenant Dixon Piper)
has quickly established himself as one of Hollywood’s most versatile talents.
Phillippe has starred in many diverse roles, beginning with his first film, Disney’s
White Squall, a project that enabled him to work with acclaimed director Ridley Scott. In
his early films, Phillippe was able to work with exceptional actors and directors. These
roles included work in Little Boy Blue, with Nastassja Kinski; Gregg Araki’s Nowhere
(the third film in Araki’s controversial trilogy); Homegrown, with Billy Bob Thornton;
and Playing by Heart, with the ensemble cast of Sean Connery, Angelina Jolie and Gena
Rowlands.
Starring roles soon followed with the box-office smash I Know What You Did
Last Summer; Cruel Intentions, which co-starred Reese Witherspoon and Sarah Michelle
Gellar; and 54, with Mike Myers.
Phillippe has also starred in Robert Altman’s Oscar®-nominated film Gosford
Park; Igby Goes Down, with Susan Sarandon and Kieran Culkin; Antitrust, with Tim
Robbins; Paramount Classic’s Company Man, with Sigourney Weaver; the cult classic
The Way of the Gun, with Benicio Del Toro; the war drama Stop-Loss, alongside Joseph
Gordon-Levitt and Channing Tatum; Franklyn, opposite Eva Green; Clint Eastwood’s
Flags of Our Fathers; Breach, opposite Chris Cooper; Five Fingers, with Laurence
Fishburne; Chaos; as well as the Academy Award®-winning film Crash, for director Paul
Haggis.
Phillippe has formed the production company Great White Ape Productions and
has a number of films and television shows currently in development.
Phillippe makes his home in Los Angeles.
MacGruber—Production Information 15
Veteran actor POWERS BOOTHE’s (Colonel Faith) long and enviable career is
filled with powerful performances on the silver screen, on television and in the theater.
Boothe was last seen opposite Sean Astin in the baseball film The Final Season, which
premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival.
Boothe previously starred in Sin City, directed by Robert Rodriguez. His
extensive list of additional film credits include Frailty, directed by Bill Paxton; Men of
Honor; U Turn and Nixon, both directed by Oliver Stone; Blue Sky; Tombstone; Sudden
Death; Rapid Fire; Extreme Prejudice; The Emerald Forest, directed by John Boorman;
Red Dawn; Southern Comfort; Cruising; and The Goodbye Girl, to name a few.
On the small screen, he appeared as the vice president of the United States on the
sixth season of the Emmy Award-winning drama 24. He also starred as Cy Tolliver in
HBO’s critically lauded drama Deadwood, for which the cast earned a SAG Award
nomination for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series. Boothe
won an Emmy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Reverend Jim Jones in the
television movie Guyana Tragedy: The Story of Jim Jones. He has also starred in various
television miniseries including Attila, Joan of Arc and True Women, opposite Dana
Delany and Angelina Jolie. He played the lead in the television movie By Dawn’s Early
Light, with James Earl Jones, and starred as the title character in the HBO series Philip
Marlowe, Private Eye. Other television credits include Second Nature, Showtime’s The
Spree, Web of Deception, Marked for Murder, Wild Card and HBO’s Into the Homeland.
Boothe’s career began in the theater after he received his MFA from Southern
Methodist University and became a resident actor at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival.
Shortly thereafter, he made his New York stage debut in the Lincoln Center production of
Richard III and later went on to star on Broadway as the lead in James McClure’s
critically acclaimed one-act comedy, Lone Star.
MAYA RUDOLPH (Casey) began her performing career with the famed
improvisational troupe The Groundlings.
In 2000, she made her debut on NBC’s Saturday Night Live, where she continued
as one of the show’s regular players for more than seven years. Rudolph’s turns included
memorably skewed portrayals of Oprah Winfrey, Donatella Versace and Michelle
MacGruber—Production Information 16
Obama; and such recurring sketches as “Wake Up Wakefield” and “Time-Travelin’ Scott
Joplin” (in which she played piano as Mr. Joplin).
Rudolph was recently seen starring opposite John Krasinski in the Sam Mendes
comedy Away We Go, and in a recurring role on the NBC comedy series Kath & Kim.
Her previous films include Robert Altman’s A Prairie Home Companion; Mike
Judge’s Idiocracy; Bruce Paltrow’s Duets; Peter Segal’s 50 First Dates; Miguel Arteta’s
Chuck & Buck; Andrew Niccol’s Gattaca; James L. Brooks’ As Good as It Gets; and as
the voice of Rapunzel in Shrek the Third.
Rudolph will next be seen opposite Adam Sandler, Chris Rock and Salma Hayek
in Grown Ups.
VAL KILMER (Dieter Von Cunth) is one of the most prolific actors of his
generation. From his more recent work as a career military officer in David Mamet’s
Spartan, back through his work with Oliver Stone in The Doors and Michael Mann in
Heat, to his early work in Top Gun, Kilmer has worked with many of the film industry’s
most respected directors and actors. His recent films include Millennium Film’s The Bad
Lieutenant: Port of Call—New Orleans, with Nicolas Cage and directed by Werner
Herzog, and Streets of Blood, with Sharon Stone and Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson.
Other recent projects include Ric Roman Waugh’s Felon, with Stephen Dorff;
Déjà Vu, an action-thriller produced by Jerry Bruckheimer Films for Touchstone Pictures
in which Kilmer starred with Denzel Washington and Jim Caviezel; and Kiss Kiss Bang
Bang, written and directed by Shane Black, and co-starring Robert Downey Jr.
The youngest student ever admitted to the drama department at Juilliard, Kilmer
made his feature debut in the comedy Top Secret!, which he followed with Real Genius
and his breakout role as Iceman in Tony Scott’s Top Gun, opposite Tom Cruise.
Kilmer’s other memorable roles include Jim Morrison in Oliver Stone’s The
Doors, the title character in Batman Forever, Doc Holliday in Tombstone and Simon
Templar in The Saint. His other starring roles include Michael Mann’s Heat, with Robert
De Niro and Al Pacino; True Romance, directed by Tony Scott; Ron Howard’s Willow;
At First Sight; and Thunderheart. He won a Prism Award for his work in The Salton Sea,
appeared in the 3-D epic Wings of Courage and voiced the character of Moses in the
MacGruber—Production Information 17
animated film The Prince of Egypt.
Kilmer’s films also include Oliver Stone’s Alexander, Renny Harlin’s
Mindhunters, the animated feature Delgo, Ron Howard’s The Missing and Wonderland.
During the production of Wonderland, Kilmer began a photography project that
blossomed into a behind-the-scenes pictorial book. Released by Pocket Books, the
photographs were exhibited in several cities in the United States.
When Kilmer was at Juilliard, he co-wrote the play How It All Began, based on
the true story of a West German radical. The play was directed by Des McAnuff and was
produced by Joseph Papp for The Public Theater. He made his Broadway debut in the
1983 production of The Slab Boys, with Sean Penn and Kevin Bacon. He also appeared
in Papp’s Delacorte Theater production of Henry IV: Part One, As You Like It, the title
role in Hamlet and ’Tis Pity She’s a Whore, also at Papp’s Public Theater. He starred as
Moses in the Max Azria-produced musical The Ten Commandments at the Kodak Theatre
in Los Angeles. In 2005, he starred on London’s West End at the Playhouse Theatre in
Andrew Rattenbury’s adaptation of The Postman Always Rings Twice, as Frank
Chambers, the drifter played by Jack Nicholson in the 1981 film version.
On television, Kilmer starred in the critically acclaimed HBO Original Movie The
Man Who Broke 1,000 Chains, for which he received a CableACE nomination, and in
Gore Vidal’s Billy the Kid, playing the title role.
ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS
JORMA TACCONE (Written by/Directed by) is a writer/director and composer
for Saturday Night Live. Along with his writing partners Andy Samberg and Akiva
Schaffer, he is responsible for creating the popular SNL “Digital Shorts,” which have
reinvigorated the series and spurred many watercooler moments over the past several
seasons. Some of the most notable shorts include their Emmy-winning “D**k in a Box”
(with Justin Timberlake), “Lazy Sunday” (a rap about The Chronicles of Narnia) and
“The Natalie Portman Rap,” all of which Taccone co-wrote and for which he composed
music with the help of his brother, Asa.
MacGruber—Production Information 18
Taccone has also directed many digital shorts, including “MacGruber,” “Business
Meeting” (with Rainn Wilson and Arcade Fire), “Roy Rules” and “Sloths.” Taccone was
honored with a Writers Guild Award for his work on the 2005/2006 season and a
Peabody Award for the 2008/2009 season of the show.
Taccone, Samberg and Schaffer, collectively known as The Lonely Island, have
been friends since junior high school in Berkeley, California. In 2000, the trio began
writing, directing and producing its own brand of comedy and showcasing it on their
Web site www.thelonelyisland.com. The Lonely Island’s debut album, “Incredibad,”
was released by Universal Republic in February 2009 and is the first comedy album to
reach No. 1 on iTunes.
Taccone is also an engaging performer, who made his feature acting debut in Hot
Rod. In the film, he appeared opposite Andy Samberg, Ian McShane, Sissy Spacek, Isla
Fisher and Bill Hader, as Rod’s (Samberg) geeky and lovable half-brother, Kevin. He
also appeared as the lovable monkey-boy Chaka in Universal Pictures’ Land of the Lost,
starring Will Ferrell and directed by Brad Silberling.
Taccone is the son of accomplished theater director Anthony Taccone and a
graduate of the UCLA theater department, where he studied acting. He currently resides
in New York City.
JOHN SOLOMON (Written by) is a staff writer at Saturday Night Live.
LORNE MICHAELS (Produced by) is the creator and executive producer of
Saturday Night Live, the longest-running and highest-rated weekly late-night television
program in history.
Over the last 30 years, SNL has won numerous Emmy Awards and was honored
with the prestigious George Foster Peabody Award (1990, 2008, 2009) and cited as “truly
a national institution.” Michaels has personally won 13 Emmys as a writer and producer.
In 2004, he received the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor at The Kennedy Center
in Washington, D.C. He was also inducted into the Academy of Television Arts &
Sciences Hall of Fame.
MacGruber—Production Information 19
Michaels has produced numerous motion pictures, most recently Baby Mama,
starring Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, and the hit comedy Mean Girls, starring Lindsay
Lohan and Tina Fey, who also wrote the film. Past film credits include Wayne’s World,
Tommy Boy and ¡Three Amigos! (which he produced and co-wrote with Steve Martin and
Randy Newman).
In addition to his weekly duties on SNL, Michaels is executive producer of NBC’s
Late Night With Jimmy Fallon and the hit comedy 30 Rock, starring Tina Fey, Alec
Baldwin and Tracy Morgan.
Michaels’ past television credits also include The Kids in the Hall and Night
Music, as well as specials with Lily Tomlin, Steve Martin, Paul Simon, The Rutles, Flip
Wilson, The Rolling Stones, The Beach Boys, Randy Newman, Neil Young and Simon
and Garfunkel in Central Park.
On Broadway, he produced and directed Gilda Radner Live From New York and
produced the subsequent motion picture Gilda Live.
Michaels began his career in Toronto, where he attended the University of
Toronto, worked as a writer and producer for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and
starred in the comedy series The Hart & Lorne Terrific Hour. In 1968, he moved to Los
Angeles and worked as a writer for NBC’s Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In and other
television series, until he left in 1975 to begin SNL in New York.
In 1979, Michaels founded the New York-based production company Broadway
Video Inc.
JOHN GOLDWYN (Produced by), grandson of the legendary Hollywood
producer Samuel Goldwyn, began his motion picture career at The Ladd Company in
1981. During his tenure there, Goldwyn developed the hugely successful Police
Academy franchise, the second installment of which he executive produced in 1985.
In the fall of 1985, Goldwyn joined Alan Ladd, Jr., at MGM/United Artists and
oversaw such hits as Running Scared (1986), Moonstruck (1987) and A Fish Called
Wanda (1988). In 1988, Goldwyn became executive vice president of worldwide
production and was responsible for all aspects of production and development for the
studio.
MacGruber—Production Information 20
In 1990, Goldwyn left MGM/United Artists to join Paramount Pictures and was
promoted to president of the Paramount Motion Picture Group one year later. In 2002,
chairwoman Sherry Lansing elevated Goldwyn to vice chairman of the Paramount
Motion Picture Group.
While Goldwyn was a senior executive at the studio, Paramount Pictures took
home three Best Picture Oscars® for Forrest Gump, Braveheart and Titanic. Other
notable films released under his aegis include Indecent Proposal; Wayne’s World and its
sequel, Wayne’s World 2; The Firm; The Truman Show; The First Wives Club; Mission:
Impossible and its sequel, Mission: Impossible II; Tom Clancy’s Patriot Games, Clear
and Present Danger and The Sum of All Fears; What Women Want; Saving Private Ryan;
Deep Impact; Mean Girls; and many others.
In 2004, Goldwyn became an independent producer at the studio. He produces
the award-winning Showtime hit series Dexter, starring Michael C. Hall. He also
produced the critically acclaimed I’m Not There, with Christine Vachon. This biography
of Bob Dylan, written and directed by Todd Haynes, starred Richard Gere, Cate
Blanchett, Heath Ledger and Christian Bale. For her outstanding work portraying one of
the many sides of Dylan, Cate Blanchett was nominated for an Academy Award®.
In 2005, Goldwyn teamed with Saturday Night Live producer Lorne Michaels to
form Michaels-Goldwyn Productions at Paramount. Their first collaboration, Hot Rod,
starring Andy Samberg and directed by Akiva Schaffer, was released in August 2007. In
2008, they released the comedy Baby Mama, starring Tina Fey and Amy Poehler.
RYAN KAVANAUGH (Executive Producer) is a principal of Relativity Media,
LLC, a self-sustaining media company engaged in the business of developing, creating
and acquiring content and content-related assets.
Kavanaugh created business and financial structures for a number of studios,
production companies and producers. Since moving from venture and private equity to
entertainment industry transactions, he has introduced more than $10 billion of capital to
these structures including Sony Pictures, Universal Pictures, Warner Bros., Marvel and
many others.
MacGruber—Production Information 21
In 2008, Relativity Media finalized its acquisition of Rogue from Universal. The
purchase of Rogue, a company that specializes in the production and distribution of
lower-budget films, includes the label’s entire library of films, as well as producing deals
and more than 30 projects currently in development. Rogue has had particular success
within the horror genre; the first Rogue release under Relativity’s ownership was The
Unborn, starring Gary Oldman, Cam Gigandet, Odette Yustman and Idris Elba. The
Unborn grossed more than $19 million at the box office on opening weekend and has
earned nearly $60 million to date. The Last House on the Left, based on a Wes Craven
film, opened to $15 million at the box office, and Fighting, starring Channing Tatum and
Terrence Howard, grossed a strong $11.5 million in its opening weekend. Additionally,
Relativity Media recently launched Rogue as an overall lifestyle brand to include a
clothing line, a social networking platform and a music label.
In a significant milestone for the entertainment finance industry, Kavanaugh
created a wholly owned subsidiary, Relativity Media Holdings, which has concluded an
agreement with Citigroup Corporate and Investment Banking on a co-financing package
for approximately 45 studio films for the next five years. With this deal, Relativity will
co-invest in approximately 75 percent of Columbia Pictures’ films, under a five-year
revolving credit facility.
Jill Goldsmith of Variety wrote of Kavanaugh: “His co-financing deals are the
most successful ever in Hollywood. He’s been amazingly proactive and is the envy of
many on Wall Street involved in the business.”
Kavanaugh has created a number of unique financing packages, including Gun
Hill Road I and Gun Hill Road II, which provide discrete and separate funds for both
Sony Pictures Entertainment and Universal Pictures, marking the first time two studios
received funding from the same source. In January 2008, Relativity Media announced
the formation of the wholly owned subsidiary Relativity Capital, which is to be a
principal investor in major media transactions, including studio slates, the Relativity
Media Single Picture Business, library acquisitions and other media-related cash-flow
investments. Elliott Associates, L.P., a New York-based hedge fund, will be working
with and providing financing to Relativity Capital in these media transactions.
MacGruber—Production Information 22
As part of its “single-picture business,” Relativity Media develops, produces,
finances and distributes approximately one film per month, packaged with top-tier talent
and filmmakers and imbued with strong commercial appeal both domestically and
internationally. Credits under this single-picture business include 3:10 to Yuma, starring
Russell Crowe and Christian Bale for director James Mangold; The Forbidden Kingdom,
teaming Jet Li and Jackie Chan for director Rob Minkoff; and The Bank Job, starring
Jason Statham for director Roger Donaldson. Relativity’s recent single-picture lineup
includes Jim Sheridan’s Brothers, starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Tobey Maguire and Natalie
Portman; Joe Johnston’s The Wolfman, starring Benicio Del Toro, Anthony Hopkins and
Emily Blunt; Lasse Hallström’s Dear John, starring Channing Tatum and Amanda
Seyfried; the heist thriller Brilliant, starring Scarlett Johansson; the family action film
The Spy Next Door, starring Jackie Chan; and Rob Marshall’s Nine, starring Daniel Day-
Lewis, Nicole Kidman, Penélope Cruz, Marion Cotillard and Sophia Loren.
Prior to his work with Relativity, Kavanaugh started a venture capital company at
age 22 and, during that time, raised and invested more than $400 million of equity due to
a number of venture and private equity transactions.
TUCKER TOOLEY (Executive Producer) began his producing career in 1997
and, over the course of the next decade, became a prolific and successful independent
producer. Described as “the rarest of combinations” by Fade In magazine in its top-100
people in Hollywood issue, Tooley was able to consistently produce commercial films,
package A-list talent and deliver films on budget and on schedule.
In 1999, Tooley established the production shingle Newman/Tooley Films with
then producing partner Vincent Newman. Over the next seven years, the duo produced a
successful slate of both independent and studio movies, working with some of the top
talent in Hollywood.
In 2006, Tooley served as CEO of Tooley Productions and produced
Shadowboxer, starring Academy Award® winner Helen Mirren and directed by Lee
Daniels (Precious), as well as the critically acclaimed Felon, directed by Ric Roman
Waugh.
MacGruber—Production Information 23
After a decade of producing 12 feature films and television on his own, Tooley
joined Ryan Kavanaugh’s Relativity Media as president of production. Along with
Kavanaugh, Tooley has built the company’s Single Picture Films Division into a full-
fledged production company, developing, financing and producing eight to 10 films a
year. Tooley and his executive team currently oversee all of Relativity Media’s
upcoming single pictures including Immortals, an action-adventure from the producers of
300 and acclaimed director Tarsem Singh; The Fighter, starring Academy Award®-
nominated actor Mark Wahlberg, Academy Award®-nominated actor Amy Adams and
Christian Bale; Academy Award® winner Steven Soderbergh’s Knockout; and the 3-D
action picture Sanctum, from the legendary James Cameron.
Two recent pictures (Nine and Brothers) released by Relativity’s Single Picture
Films Division and overseen by Tooley were nominated for seven Golden Globe awards.
Other recent releases include Dear John, directed by Academy Award®-nominated Lasse
Hallström and starring Channing Tatum and Amanda Seyfried, and The Spy Next Door,
starring Jackie Chan, George Lopez and Billy Ray Cyrus.
Tooley was most recently honored with the 2009 Ischia Global Film & Music
Fest Executive of the Year Award.
A gifted writer and an innovative force behind the camera, AKIVA SCHAFFER
(Executive Producer) is poised to lead a new generation of directors with his fresh vision
of true comedy. Schaffer is currently a writer/director for Saturday Night Live and has
received an Emmy and two Writers Guild Awards for his work on the show. Along with
his writing partners, Andy Samberg and Jorma Taccone, he is responsible for creating the
popular SNL “Digital Shorts,” which have reinvigorated the series and spurred many
watercooler moments over the past four seasons. Some of the most notable shorts
include the Emmy-winning “D**k in a Box” and its sequel “Motherlover” (featuring
Justin Timberlake), “Lazy Sunday,” “J**z in My Pants,” “United Way,” “I’m on a Boat”
(featuring T-Pain) and many others, all of which Schaffer co-wrote and directed. Many
of the videos have garnered unprecedented online interest and acclaim.
Taccone, Samberg and Schaffer, collectively known as The Lonely Island, have
been friends since junior high school in Berkeley, California. In 2000, the trio began
MacGruber—Production Information 24
writing, directing and producing its own brand of comedy and showcasing it on their
Web site www.thelonelyisland.com. The Lonely Island’s debut album, “Incredibad,”
was released by Universal Republic in February 2009 and became the No. 1 comedy
album of the year, featuring the Grammy-nominated platinum single “I’m on a Boat,”
which has sold more than one million copies in the U.S.
Schaffer made his feature-length directorial debut with Hot Rod for Paramount
Pictures, starring Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, Ian McShane, Sissy Spacek, Isla
Fisher, Bill Hader and Danny McBride.
Schaffer is a graduate of the film department of the University of California,
Santa Cruz.
SETH MEYERS (Executive Producer) recently returned to Saturday Night Live
for his ninth season. It is his fourth season as head writer and his fourth season as the
anchor of SNL’s “Weekend Update.” Before focusing his attention solely on “Weekend
Update,” Meyers was a regular player in sketches, performing numerous characters and
impressions, most notably, an uncanny portrayal of Senator John Kerry for the show’s
satire of the 2004 presidential election.
A graduate of Northwestern University, he studied and performed at
ImprovOlympic (where many SNL cast members and writers got their start, including
Rachel Dratch, Tina Fey and Amy Poehler) before moving on to Boom Chicago in
Amsterdam, Holland. His acclaimed show Pickups and Hiccups, with partner Jill
Benjamin, toured Europe and eventually caught the eye of SNL.
Most recently, Meyers wrote the script for an upcoming feature, Key Party, for
Lorne Michaels’ Broadway Video Inc. He has appeared in Paul Weitz’s American
Dreamz and alongside Brendan Fraser in Journey to the Center of the Earth 3D, and he
was seen in 2008’s Nick and Nora’s Infinite Playlist.
Meyers currently resides in New York. His birthday is December 28.
ERIN DAVID (Executive Producer) works in development and production at
Michaels-Goldwyn Productions. She most recently co-produced Universal Pictures’ hit
comedy Baby Mama, starring Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. Previously, she served as an
MacGruber—Production Information 25
associate producer on Akiva Schaffer’s cult comedy Hot Rod, starring Andy Samberg,
and served in the same role during her time at Saturday Night Live.
A graduate of the University of Colorado at Boulder, David and her husband
currently live in Los Angeles with their family.
BRANDON TROST (Director of Photography) is a fourth-generation filmmaker
and has worked in the film industry for his entire life. Raised on sets, he began young as
an assistant to his father in the craft of special effects. After years of working, creating
and learning the intricacies of filmmaking, he developed an appreciation for the look of
film and for the art of cinematography.
To pursue his passion for film, Trost enrolled in the Los Angeles Film School,
where he developed a personal style and aesthetic while studying under Academy
Award®-winning and -nominated cinematographers such as William A. Fraker, Ralf
Bode and John A. Alonzo. After years of filmmaking experience behind him, he quickly
gained extensive experience shooting in all formats. This experience shows in his work
with more than 20 feature films, dozens of music videos and more than 80 short films
under his belt.
Trost continues to push the boundaries of film with a promising career. His
recent films include He Was a Quiet Man, winner of Best Cinematography at the
Newport Beach Film Festival and starring Christian Slater, William H. Macy and Elisha
Cuthbert; Crank: High Voltage, starring Jason Statham and Amy Smart; and Rob
Zombie’s Halloween II.
The world of production design has a good friend in ROBB WILSON-KING
(Production Designer). For a very long time, his career has been full of varied genres,
styles and unique visions.
Wilson-King was born in Hollywood to a jazz pianist mother and a
designer/builder father. His early roots were influenced greatly with design, theme and
possibility. Wilson-King’s “childhood fort” was on Disney’s backlot (on the Zorro set),
so his eventual path into film design was both passionate and deeply sought.
MacGruber—Production Information 26
Wilson-King’s recent film credits include comedies such as Rush Hour, Money
Talks, Scary Movie, Run Ronnie Run, Just Friends, The Librarian: Return to King
Solomon’s Mines on TNT and, most recently, AMC/Sony Pictures Television’s hit series
Breaking Bad.
While working on MacGruber, Wilson-King enjoyed revisiting his action pictures
of the 1980s. The style of the film was a marriage of sentiment and recollection mixed
with the funny writing of the talented Saturday Night Live writers—to Rob, a perfect fit!
Wilson-King recently finished Brett Ratner’s feature Happy Birthday for
Relativity Media and is now designing the pilot for FOX’s dark comedy Chaos, with
Ratner at the helm.
Wilson-King’s mantra is to keep delivering the wealth of design magic to every
project he tackles. He shows no sign of slowing this process down any time soon.
JAMIE GROSS (Editor) got her start assistant editing on the Oscar®-nominated
documentary Murderball. She was an editor on the Comedy Central show Michael &
Michael Have Issues. and the IFC sketch comedy show The Whitest Kids U’Know. She
worked with director David Wain on his comedy shorts Wainy Days and with Rob
Corddry on Childrens’ Hospital.
Previously, Gross worked as an assistant editor on Role Models and The Ten.
MATTHEW COMPTON (Music by) has previously written tracks on the
soundtracks for Whip It, Igor and The Signal. For television, Compton works for the
commercial house Black Iris Music and has written music for MTV’s The Hills, Video
Music Awards and The Real World.
Compton wrote for and played on The Lonely Island’s debut album, “Incredibad,”
and has recorded with the bands Har Mar Superstar and Cursive.
SUSANNA PUISTO (Costume Designer) is a native of Finland and has brought
her style and vision to the silver screen since the early ’90s. She started out styling music
videos and commercials for many of the hottest directors including Gore Verbinski and
worked with Bad Religion, Counting Crows and the Eels, among others.
MacGruber—Production Information 27
Her leap into the world of feature films came in Lookin’ Italian, starring Matt
LeBlanc. Puisto’s other film credits include The Chameleon, starring Marc-André
Grondin, Ellen Barkin and Famke Janssen; Beyond a Reasonable Doubt, starring Michael
Douglas, Amber Tamblyn and Jesse Metcalfe; Cleaner, starring Samuel L. Jackson, Ed
Harris and Eva Mendes; American Venus, starring Rebecca De Mornay; Shade, starring
Gabriel Byrne, Sylvester Stallone, Jamie Foxx, Melanie Griffith, Thandie Newton and
Stuart Townsend; Under the Hula Moon, starring Stephen Baldwin, Chris Penn and
Emily Lloyd; Still Breathing, starring Brendan Fraser; Gunshy, starring William Petersen
and Diane Lane; Primary Suspect, starring William Baldwin; Splendor, directed by
Gregg Araki; Pilgrim, starring Ray Liotta; Fascination, starring Jacqueline Bisset; and
many others.
Puisto’s television credits include creating the looks for Buffy the Vampire Slayer,
MTV’s ultra-hip Dead at 21 and the CBS hit How I Met Your Mother.
Puisto calls herself a pink-collar worker and, when not working in movies, she
loves to garden in stilettos.
—macgruber—