ALPHA DOGYou're Justin Timberlake. Four years ago, you transformed yourself from boy-band confection to studly solo artist with Justifted, which soId 3.5 million copies. So why try to reinvent yourself again -this time as a movie star?
Before crying Britney, consider that Timberlake (who's been in the studio working on a follow-up album, due this fall) has quietly banked four supporting roles in upcoming films. "Justin could've had a starring role," says Craig Brewer (Hustle & Flow), who directed the singer in the drama Black Snake Moan. "But he's aware that audiences are cynical about music stars crossing over into acting." Brewer, however, wasn't. He was soId on Timberlake, 25, as an anxiety-ridden National Guardsman after just one meeting:
"When I approached him for it I said, 'It's a vulnerable role, and I really want you to tap into something.' He understood that." The budding actor also gets the upside of aligning himself with hat indie directors like Brewer and Richard Kelly (Donnie Darko)-the latter tapping Timberlake for a small role as a soldier in his dark comedy Southland Tales. Says casting director Billy Hopkins, who auditioned Timberlake for John Madden's thriller Killshot but ultimately did not use him: "He was actually quite good.... The way he's handling his career is smart. If a movie fails, it's not just his failure."
So far, Timberlake's work has elicited mixed reviews. The crime drama Edison, in which he plays a rookie journalist opposite Morgan Freeman, got panned at the Toranto film festival, but he earned pats on the back at Sundance for his turn as a thugin Nick Cassavetes' Alpha Dog. Still, if all else fails, Timberlake (who declined to comment for this story) always has that gig voicing a young king alongside girlfriend Cameron Diaz in a wee 2007 film called Shrek 3. And we'd certainly never question Timberlake's voice. (Additional reporting by Beth Johnson)
Information
Directed by:
Nick Cassavetes
Writing credits (WGA) :
Nick Cassavetes (written by)
Genre: Crime / Drama (more)
Tagline: Inspired by true events. (more)
Plot Synopsis by Mark Deming
A drug dealer moves on to bigger crimes in an effort to settle a score with disastrous results in this drama inspired by actual events. Though barely out of his teens, Johnny Truelove (Emile Hirsch) has already built a lucrative career for himself selling drugs — he has his own home, a luxury car, and posse of friends who do double duty as his crew, including Elvis (Shawn Hatosy), Frankie (Justin Timberlake), and Tiko (Fernando Vargas). While life at Johnny's house is usually a constant party interrupted by occasional dope deals, Johnny has lost all of his patience with Jake Mazursky (Ben Foster), a regular customer who has run up a large tab that he can't pay. Determined to clear Jake's account, Johnny and his boys plan to kidnap Jake and hold him for ransom, but when they happen upon his 15-year-old stepbrother, Zack (Anton Yelchin), they impulsively decide to take the youngster instead. Jake's father, Butch (David Thornton), and his stepmother, Olivia (Sharon Stone), are already furious with their junkie son when they learn about Zack's disappearance, and aren't sure what they should do. Meanwhile at Johnny's place, Frankie takes a liking to young Zack, who already admires his brother's high-flying lifestyle, and introduces the kid to the joys of grown-up partying, which he takes to with dangerous zeal. Also featuring Bruce Willis as Johnny's father, Alpha Dog was based on the real-life story of Jesse James Hollywood, who at the age of 21 became one of the youngest people to ever appear on the FBI's "Most Wanted" list.
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