Bryan Cranston is a workaholic. Every piece of news we now get about casting will usually be something to do with what Bryan Cranston has joined next. What’s most amazing about him is that he manages to get some of the most interesting jobs as a supporting actor in high profile pictures. According to Variety, Cranston has just added another worthy credit to his resume, Gangster Squad.
The film is based on a series of L.A. Times articles written in 2008. Set in the 40’s, it concerns a specialized unit of officers who were charged with fighting the mafia, namely led by Mickey Cohen. Cranston will play one of the gangster squad members, Max Kennard, a Texan who fearsomely has his own moral compass. Cranston joins an already small but awesome cast. He will work alongside Ryan Gosling, Josh Brolin and Anthony Mackie as they try to take down the mafia, led by Sean Penn who will play Mickey Cohen.
To me that sounds awesome, the subject of Mickey Cohen was lightly touched upon in one of my favourite movies L.A. Confidential, not to spoil anything for you who can’t remember the opening of that movie but he doesn’t get gunned down in a massive firefight. To see a return to that period with this cast will be fantastic. The film is directed by Ruben Fleischer and written by cop turned author Will Beall, with shooting set to start in the fall.
In the meantime you will see Cranston later this year on TV when Breaking Bad returns, then in the cinema with Drive, Contagion and Larry Crowne, plus next year he’ll appear in Total Recall, Argo, John Carter and Rock of Ages.