As reported last week by Deadline’s Mike Fleming, Taylor Hackford’s feature The Comedian will make its world premiere Friday Nov. 11 as a special screening of AFI Fest 2016 in Hollywood.
From Sony Pictures Classics and Cinelou Films, the film stars Robert De Niro as an aging comic icon named Jackie attempting to reinvent himself, though his audience only wants to know him as his former television character. Already a strain on his younger brother (Danny DeVito) and his wife (Patti LuPone), Jackie is forced to serve out a sentence doing community service for accosting an audience member. While there, he meets Harmony (Leslie Mann), the daughter of a sleazy Florida real estate mogul (Harvey Keitel), and the two find inspiration in one another, resulting in surprising consequences.
Also in the cast is Edie Falco, Veronica Ferres, Charles Grodin and Cloris Leachman. Written by Art Linson, The Comedian is produced Linson, John Linson, Mark Canton, Courtney Solomon and Hackford. The AFI screening, presented by Audi, is set for Nov. 11 at the Egyptian Theatre.
AFI Fest takes place November 10–17, with screenings and other events at the TCL Chinese Theatre, the TCL Chinese 6 Theatres, the Egyptian Theatre and The Hollywood Roosevelt.
