Emilio Estevez is going public with his latest project…
Peacock has unveiled a slate of original films that will debut on NBC’s streaming service in September, including the 58-year-old part-Spanish American actor’s latest film The Public.
The film, written, executive produced and directed by Estevez, centers around an act of civil disobedience that turns into a standoff with police when homeless people in Cincinnati take over the public library to seek shelter from the bitter cold.
The film stars Alec Baldwin, Estevez, Jena Malone, Taylor Schilling, Christian Slater, Che “Rhymefest” Smith, Gabrielle Union, Jacob Vargas, Michael K. Williams, and Jeffrey Wright.
The Public will premiere on Peacock on Thursday, September 15.
The film had its world premiere on September 9, 2018, at the Toronto Film Festival. It was theatrically released in the United States on April 5, 2019, by Greenwich Entertainment.
The 57-year-old part-Spanish American actor will reprise his role as Coach Gordon Bombay in the Disney+original series The Mighty Ducks, based on the hit ‘90s Disneymovie franchise.
On the series, Estevez will star opposite lead Lauren Graham and young lead Brady Noon. Estevez also will serve as an executive producer.
Also cast in the 10-episode series are Swayam Bhatia, Taegen Burns, Julee Cerda, Bella Higginbotham, Luke Islam, Kiefer O’Reilly, Maxwell Simkinsand De’Jon Watts.
The series comes from the original film’s writer Steve Brill, Till Deathcreators Josh Goldsmithand Cathy Yuspaand ABC Signature Studios.
Co-created by Brill, Goldsmith and Yuspa, the reboot is set in present-day Minnesota, where the Mighty Ducks have evolved from scrappy underdogs to an ultra-competitive, powerhouse youth hockey team.
After 12-year-old Evan (Noon) is unceremoniously cut from the Ducks, he and his mom Alex (Graham) set out to build their own ragtag team of misfits to challenge the cutthroat, win-at-all-costs culture of competitive youth sports. With the help of Gordon Bombay (Estevez), they discover the joys of playing just for the love of the game.
“Once a Duck, always a Duck!, and after 25 years, I am delighted to lace up my skates, put on Coach Bombay’s jacket and return to play the iconic character for this new chapter in The Mighty Ducks franchise,” Estevez said. “Likewise, I am thrilled to return to my old stomping grounds with my friends at Disney and Steve Brill, the original creator of the franchise, to join them on their exciting new platform, Disney+.”
“It was an easy decision to bring back the Quack Attack with a modern and fresh twist,” said Agnes Chu, SVP, Content, Disney+. “For a generation, The Mighty Ducks stood for teamwork, friendship, and heart and we’re excited to see the Ducks fly together once again and bring the franchise to new audiences around the world. We are thrilled to have Emilio Estevez reprising his iconic role.”
The first entry in the film series, 1992’s The Mighty Ducks, was a comedy-drama centered on a youth league hockey team. It was directed by Stephen Herek and starred Estevez.
As a filmmaker, Estevez most recently wrote, directed and starred in the filmThe Public,which premiered at TIFF in 2018.
The 47-year-old Mexican-American actor has been cast as a series regular opposite Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias in Mr. Iglesias, Netflix’s upcoming comedy series from the comedian and Cristela co-creator/executive producer Kevin Hench.
In the comedy, Iglesias plays Gabe, a good-natured public high school teacher who works at his alma mater. He takes on teaching gifted but misfit kids to not only save them from being “counseled out” by a bully bureaucrat Assistant Principal, but also to help them unlock their full potential.
Vargas will play Tony Medina, Gabe’s longtime best friend and fellow teacher at the high school.
Iglesias executive produces with Hench.
Vargas is known for his role as Allesandro Montez on Sons of Anarchy. He stars in the feature The Public with Emilio Estevez, which will screen at the upcoming Toronto International Film Festival. His recent television credits include Luke Cage and HBO’s Mosaic.
Emilio Estevez is bringing his next project to the public…
The 54-year-old part-Spanish American actor/filmmaker is set to direct the dramedy the public, which will pull back the curtain on what is really happening inside America’s public libraries.
Christian Slater, Jeffrey Wright and Michael Kenneth Williams will star in the film, which will tell the story about “the last bastion of Democracy in action.”
Having researched in the depths of the Los Angeles Public Library, Estevez said that libraries across the country have become a safe haven for the homeless.
“When I was doing research on the film Bobby, I spent a lot of time in the Los Angeles Public Library looking through microfiche for intel, so I saw this happening,” said Estevez, who wrote, is directing and also co-starring in the public.
“Then I read aLos Angeles Times article that was written by a former librarian about how the libraries have become de facto homeless shelters and how librarians had become social workers,” he added. “So on a daily basis, they would have to call emergency services about people who collapsed or had an overdose or diabetic comas … it’s the last bastion of democracy in action. I was so moved by the article and what I saw, having spent so much time at the public library, I decided to start researching for a new movie — the public.”
The film centers on a standoff with police and library officials during a brutal, life-threatening cold snap. Staging an Occupy-style sit-in, library patrons — many of whom are homeless and mentally ill — turn the Cincinnati Public Library into an impromptu shelter for one night. Drawing from the current political climate, the film strives to give equal voice to both sides as it examines the question of who will care for those who are unable to care for themselves.
After the critically acclaimed Bobby, the public also has become a nice ensemble film with Alec Baldwin, Taylor Schilling, Jena Malone, Gabrielle Union and Che “Rhymefest” Smith also in the cast.
“I haven’t done a film in a library for over 30 years, so I’m going back to it,” Estevez, who starred in The Breakfast Club said with a laugh. “But I think that the issues we’re dealing with in our story really shows both sides of the debate and the ongoing discussion about corporate personhood vs. the public. It’s something that I wanted to do in a film — show it from the inside out.” Very timely, considering what the national discussion in our nation has become.
