You can’t stop Nicolas Cage, as Deadline reports that the always-busy actor has signed on to star in The Brand, a true crime movie about the Aryan Brotherhood prison gang in San Quentin.
In addition to Cage, The Brand will also star Alexander Ludwig (Bad Boys: Ride or Die), Gabriel Basso (The Night Agent), and Maria Bakalova (The Apprentice).
Ludwig will star as Taylor Hartman, “a young lifer taken under the wing of Carter Briggs (Cage), the feared leader of San Quentin’s dominant white prison gang. When authorities attempt to dismantle the gang by transferring its members nationwide, they inadvertently spread its criminal empire beyond prison walls. As Taylor rises to power, he gains the means to build a future with Lilly (Bakalova), the woman he loves, but finds himself torn between that future and his loyalty to Carter. With violence escalating, Taylor must decide whether he has the courage to destroy the empire he helped build.“
Vincent Grashaw (Gangland) will direct from a screenplay by Alessandro Camon (The Messenger) based on the New Yorker article by bestselling author and acclaimed journalist David Grann (Killers of the Flower Moon).
I do love when Cage plays a villain, and the thought of him tackling a white supremacist prison leader… woo, that could be fantastic.
In a statement, director Vincent Grashaw said, “What excites me about The Brand is the opportunity to approach another prison story from a fresh perspective—grounded in the characters and the reality of this world, but with a propulsive energy that makes the rise of this organization feel as compelling as it is unsettling. David Grann’s article and Alessandro Camon’s screenplay have given us an incredible foundation, and I’m grateful to be working alongside this entire team. With Nicolas Cage, Alexander Ludwig, Maria Bakalova, and Gabriel Basso bringing these characters to life, we’re already off to a terrific start as we continue to build out a phenomenal cast.“
Producer Anthony Mastromauro added, “The Brand is an epic gangster story, chronicling the rise of prison gangs in the age of mass incarceration, and one man’s personal journey to hell and back. It’s an honor to bring another of David Grann’s compelling investigative stories to life, starting with a fantastic script by Alessandro Camon, supported by the vision and passion of our director Vincent Grashaw. I couldn’t be more excited about this fantastic cast starting with the strength and vulnerability of Alexander Ludwig, the brilliance of Maria Bakalova, along with the presence of Gabriel Basso and one of the greatest actors of my generation, Nicolas Cage. We believe we have all the ingredients to make a timeless piece of classic cinema.“
And producer Nathan Klingher also chimed in: “It’s incredibly exciting to work with Nicolas Cage again after the success of The Surfer. Alessandro Camon’s script for The Brand is a powerful and uncompromising adaptation of David Grann’s reporting, and with Vincent Grashaw directing and Alexander Ludwig, Maria Bakalova, and Gabriel Basso joining Nick, we feel we have something really special. The Brand is exactly the kind of bold, filmmaker-driven work Gramercy Park Media strives to help create and we’re thrilled to be launching it at AFM.“
What are your favourite Nicolas Cage villain roles?