- Title: USA: Holiday film stars Witherspoon and Vaughn
- Date: 22nd November 2008
- Summary: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (NOVEMBER 20, 2008) (REUTERS) WIDE SHOT AND PAN OF RED CARPET. PULL OUT OF "FOUR CHRISTMASES" MOVIE POSTER. ACTRESS KATY MIXON POSES FOR PHOTOGRAPHS. VARIOUS OF ACTRESS REESE WITHERSPOON POSING FOR PHOTOGRAPHS. ACTRESS MARY STEENBURGEN AND HUSBAND ACTOR TED DANSON TALK TO REPORTERS. ACTOR ROBERT DUVALL AND WIFE LUCIANA PEDRAZA POSE FOR PHOTOGRAPHS. ACTRESS KARINA SMIRNOFF POSES FOR PHOTOGRAPHS. ACTOR JON FAVREAU AND JOYA TILLEM POSE FOR PHOTOGRAPHS. ACTRESS MINNIE DRIVER WALKS THE RED CARPET. ACTRESS SISSY SPACEK AND DAUGHTER SCHUYLER FISK POSE FOR PHOTOGRAPHS. (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTRESS REESE WITHERSPOON ON WHY THIS FILM IS UNIQUE FROM OTHER CHRISTMAS FILMS THAT HAVE BEEN MADE, SAYING: "Well, I think it has sort of a unique idea in that-- I've never really seen a Christmas movie about blended families, and I think a lot of people are dealing with, you know, whose house do I go to, dad's or mom's or my stepmom's or stepdad's. It just kind of dealt with it in a funny way, and I think it can make people laugh, maybe touch something personal." ACTRESS REESE WITHERSPOON TALKS TO REPORTERS. (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTOR JON FAVREAU ON WORKING WITH HIS CLOSE FRIEND VINCE VAUGHN, SAYING: "Well we met on Rudy, Vince and I, and then, and then I wrote 'Swingers,' and that sort of launched both of us. We did 'Made' together. And since then he's been involved as a filmmaker and become a big star, he's been really nice in accommodating my schedule as a director, and finding ways to slip me into projects he's working on. And we just worked on 'Couples Retreat' together. I flew out to Bora Bora for a few weeks. And, you know, I'm prepping 'Iron Man' now, so it's hard to find people who will work around my schedule." ACTOR TED DANSON WALKS THE RED CARPET. (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTOR ROBERT DUVALL ON WORKING WITH VINCE VAUGHN, SAYING: "Just a fun thing to do with Vince, and everybody and a fun script, you know. A feel good kind of thing, and I think, hopefully public will like it, you know, a Christmas spirit kind of thing." ACTRESS KRISTIN CHENOWETH TALKS TO REPORTERS. (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTRESS SISSY SPACEK ON WORKING WITH VINCE VAUGHN, SAYING: "It was during the writer's strike, so we did a lot of improvising. Yeah, it was great. You know, I was curious to watch him work. It's like a happening. It's exhausting. ACTRESS KRISTIN CHENOWETH TALKS TO REPORTERS. (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTRESS KRISTIN CHENOWETH ON... SAYING: "It was so fun, because we had such freedom with Vince Vaughn at the helm of it, and Reese like just making us laugh. You know, we did stick to the script, but we got to do a lot of ad libbing, too. So that made it really fun."
- Embargoed: 7th December 2008 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Usa
- Country: USA
- Reuters ID: LVA8V1IRO5K4BXWUGL08J76ZYWFT
- Story Text: Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn star in the new holiday comedy "Four Christmases." The film follows the story of a happily unmarried couple who are forced to endure spending Christmas with an assortment of eccentric relatives. The film opens across North America on November 26.
Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn star in a new holiday comedy "Four Christmases." Vaughn could not attend the Hollywood premiere on Thursday (November 19) night because he is overseas working on his next film, but Reese and other co-stars walked the red carpet.
The film follows the story of a happily unmarried San Francisco couple who are forced to endure Christmas with an assortment of eccentric relatives at four different households.
Brad (Vaughn) and Kate (Witherspoon) are dressed for the tropics and heading out of town on an exotic vacation. But when all of the flights at the airport are canceled due to heavy fog, the two must instead visit his father, her mother, his mother, and her father for a variety of yuletide festivities.
They count the hours until they can get away from their parents, step-parents, siblings, and an assortment of nieces and nephews. But by the end of the day, they are forced to examine the honesty of their own relationship and future.
Witherspoon, 32, told Reuters the film was a fresh look at how many families increasingly spend their Christmases.
"Well, I think it has sort of a unique idea in that-- I've never really seen a Christmas movie about blended families," explained Witherspoon. "And I think a lot of people are dealing with, you know, whose house do I go to, dad's or mom's or my stepmom's or stepdad's. It just kind of dealt with it in a funny way, and I think it can make people laugh, maybe touch something personal."
Jon Favreau, who played a supporting role in the movie as one of Brad's menacing brothers, has collaborated with Vaughn for more than a decade.
"Well we met on Rudy, Vince and I, and then, and then I wrote 'Swingers,' and that sort of launched both of us," shared the 42-year-old actor-turned director. "We did 'Made' together. And since then he's been involved as a filmmaker and become a big star, he's been really nice in accommodating my schedule as a director, and finding ways to slip me into projects he's working on. And we just worked on 'Couples Retreat' together. I flew out to Bora Bora for a few weeks. And, you know, I'm prepping 'Iron Man' now, so it's hard to find people who will work around my schedule."
"Couples Retreat is an upcoming comedy starring Vaughn and Favreau, which chronicles the lives of four couples who partake in therapy sessions at a tropical island resort. 38-year-old Vaughn was unable to break away from the production to attend the premiere of "Four Christmases."
Robert Duvall told Reuters he got involved with the motion picture because he also wanted to work with Vaughn.
"Just a fun thing to do with Vince," smiled the 77-year-old Hollywood veteran. "And everybody, and a fun script, you know. A feel good kind of thing, and I think, hopefully public will like it, you know, a Christmas spirit kind of thing."
Actress Sissy Spacek, who attended the premiere with daughter Schuyler Fisk, said she could not wait to see the method behind the madness of Vaughn's comic genius.
"It was during the writer's strike, so we did a lot of improvising," laughed 58-year-old Spacek. "Yeah, it was great. You know, I was curious to watch him work. It's like a happening. It's exhausting!"
Actress Kristin Chenoweth said she enjoyed making the movie because they were allowed to improvise and take artistic liberties with the script.
"It was so fun, because we had such freedom with Vince Vaughn at the helm of it, and Reese like just making us laugh," recalled Chenoweth.
"You know, we did stick to the script, but we got to do a lot of ad libbing, too. So that made it really fun."
The 40-year-old is both a stage and film actress, and a singer. She is well-known for playing a witch named Glinda in the Broadway hit musical "Wicked."
Upcoming actress Katy Mixon, who plays Jon Favreau's wife in the film, told Reuters she comes from a family of nine, and so well understands Christmas chaos.
Actor Jon Voight and actress Mary Steenburgen (who is married to actor Ted Danson) also star in the film, along with country singers Tim McGraw and Dwight Yoakam.
"Four Christmases" opens across North America on November - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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