UK: British gangster movie 'Dead Man Running' - produced by footballers Rio Ferdinand and Ashley Cole has its world-premiere in London

Record ID: 249301

  • Title: UK: British gangster movie 'Dead Man Running' - produced by footballers Rio Ferdinand and Ashley Cole has its world-premiere in London
  • Date: 24th October 2009
  • Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (English) RIO FERDINAND, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER SAYING: "There's always a place in the industry for a film like this . Hopefully this one can be a successful one." 50 CENT WALKING FROM CAR TO PHOTOCALL/ ACTRESS BRENDA BLETHYN IN FOREGROUND TALKING TO MEDIA (SOUNDBITE) (English) BRENDA BLETHYN, SAYING: "My street cred has skyrocketed. It's just great, I only have to say Fiddy, you know, me and Fiddy!" VARIOUS OF 50 CENT TALKING TO MEDIA (SOUNDBITE) (English) 50 CENT, SAYING: "He (director Alex De Rakoff) made me confident in the project and when I realized Danny and Tamer were in the project it assured me that it had the type of artistic integrity involved that I would be happy with being associated with. " REPORTER: YOUR ROLE WAS ORIGINALLY MEANT FOR A BRITISH GANGSTER. WERE YOU TEMPTED TO DO THE BRITISH ACCENT? "At first but it took me a little longer to prepare for the actual role, and at the time I was shooting a film with Mickey Rourke so I had to break from that to do this role and then go back to that film."
  • Embargoed: 8th November 2009 12:00
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  • Reuters ID: LVA1PYBXFCHICQVR1LLSV6EVDNU3
  • Story Text: England footballers Rio Ferdinand and Ashley Cole swapped their football trainers for a bit on filmmaking and presented their film 'Dead Man Running' in London on Thursday (October 22).
    Ferdinand put up the money for Dead Man Running, starring his friend Tamer Hassan who grew up on the same Peckham estate in south London.
    Ferdinand was optimistic that the film would go down well.
    "There's always a place in the industry for a film like this . Hopefully this one can be a successful one."
    Hassan who plays the main character remembered a story about Ferdinand and fellow actor Danny Dyer when they were kids:
    "When he was little he had a really big left nut. That was his party piece alright. Danny's got the same. That's all I know about him."
    Co-producer and Chelsea defender Ashley Cole, said that this project was not the beginning of a direction into filmmaking:
    "I don't think so, I think it was something that came about and me and Rio had a conversation about it that this was something that we would like to try , not forever, but we were happy with the way it's come out , people who saw the film say it's brilliant and I hope people can enjoy it."
    His wife Cheryl from Brit pop group Girls Aloud has just embarked on her solo career and Cole said he was very proud of her:
    "Yeah very proud, she's put a lot of hard work into it so hopefully on Sunday we can be celebrating her being number one."
    He added that the injury he sustained in Wednesday's match was not serious at all:
    "Yes ok, just a cut on my leg, can't see it stopping me."
    In the film, out of money and out of last chances, reformed ex-con Nick (Tamer Hassan) is given exactly 24 hours to come up with the 100,000 pounds he owes brutal gangland loan shark Thigo (50 Cent). He is a dead man running. With Thigo's men holding Nick's wheelchair-bound mum (Brenda Blethin) hostage, he and best mate Bing (Danny Dyer) embark on a frantic race against the clock that hurls them across the country's mean streets, from the East London dog tracks to the underground drug dens of Manchester. Can they go to the desperate, deadly lengths - run, fight , scam, kill - it will take to rake in the cash before it's too late? Rapper 50 cent said that he was persuaded by the director of the film Alex De Rakoff and the fine cast that this was for him,:
    "He (director Alex De Rakoff) made me confident in the project and when I realized Danny and Tamer were in the project it assured me that it had the type of artistic integrity involved that I would be happy with being associated with. "
    50's role was originally written for a British gangster, and regarding an English accent he said:
    "At first but it took me a little longer to prepare for the actual role, and at the time I was shooting a film with Mickey Rourke so I had to break from that to do this role and then go back to that film."
    Veteran actress Brenda Blethyn, who has appeared in everything from Shakespeare to Jane Austen adaptations and worked with stars from Brad Pitt to Keira Knightley, said her nieces and nephews think that now that she has played with 50 Cent, she is really hip and cool:
    "My street cred has skyrocketed. It's just great, I only have to say Fiddy, you know, me and Fiddy!"
    Spice Girl Mel B also attended the worl-premiere and when asked about the Spice Girls , she said they had future projects:
    "We're definitely going to be doing something together but I can't say what until we're all completely signed off."
    'Dead Man Running' will be in cinemas across the UK from October 30.
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