Brooke Bunny
Crackle, Sony’s streaming network, today announced that Charlie Sheen has signed on to star and executive produce the network’s original movie, ”Mad Families”, which began production in Los Angeles last week. Sheen stars as Charlie Jones, a loveable man-child with a heart of gold and a unique way of looking at the world, in the multi-generational comedy being directed and produced by Fred Wolf (”Drunk Parents”, ”Joe Dirt 2: Beautiful Loser”) from a script by Wolf & David Spade. Sheen worked with Wolf to develop his role after signing onto the project, and was represented by APA, which helped to package the deal. Anne Clements also serves as producer on the project.
”Mad Families” centers on three families – one Hispanic, one African American, one Caucasian – who find themselves sharing the same camping space on a Fourth of July holiday weekend. When none of them volunteer to vacate the site, they try to figure out a way to cohabitate peacefully, but eventually decide on a series of competitions to determine a winner. As the families face off in a series of hysterical contests, the brassy, biting Charlie quips and complains his way through the great outdoors, but ultimately, with the help of his fellow campers, ends up realizing what’s most important in life.
The project marks the second outing between Crackle and Wolf, who wrote (with David Spade) and directed, ”Joe Dirt 2: Beautiful Loser” for the network. The film, which starred Spade, was the first ever digital sequel to a major motion picture and went on to garner more than 2 million views in the first two and a half weeks of streaming on the network.
“It’s great to be back in business with Fred, and to have Charlie on board. The combination of Fred’s unique comedic voice and Charlie’s sharp wit and gift for physical humor is sure to be ‘winning,'” said Eric Berger, Executive Vice President, Digital Networks, Sony Pictures Television and General Manager, Crackle. “Original movies are a key component of our ongoing programming strategy and Mad Families is a great fit for our viewers.”
Also starring in the film are Leah Remini (“King of Queens,” “The Talk”) as Charlie’s step-mother, Cheyenne, along with Finesse Mitchell (“Roadies,” “Brother’s in Atlanta”), Juan Gabriel Pareja (“Goliath”), Charlotte McKinney (“Joe Dirt 2: Beautiful Loser”), Naya Rivera (“Glee,” “Devious Maids”), Chris Mulkey (Whiplash, “CSI: Cyber”), Clint Howard (“Arrested Development,” “Key & Peele”), Chanel Iman (Dope), Barry Shabaka Henley (“Brother’s in Atlanta,” “Better Call Saul”), Lil Rel Howery (“The Carmichael Show,”), Tiffany Haddish (“The Carmichael Show”), Efren Ramirez (“Eastbound and Down,” Napoleon Dynamite) and Danny Mora (“Chop Shop,” McFarland, USA).
