“Under the Tuscan Sun” meets “The Godfather” in the latest comedy from multi-hyphenate Toni Collette.
The “Hereditary” star plays an insecure American who inherits her grandfather’s mafia empire in Italy in “Mafia Mamma,” directed by Catherine Hardwicke. Guided by the firm’s trusted consigliere (Monica Bellucci), Collette hilariously defies everyone’s expectations, including her own, as the new head of the family business.
Giulio Corso, Francesco Mastroianni, Alfonso Perugini, Sophia Nomvete, Eduardo Scarpetta, Tim Daish, and Tommy Rodger also star.
Hardwicke (“Twilight,” “Thirteen”) directs from a script by Michael J. Feldman and Debbie Jhoon. Lead star Collette produces along with Christopher Simon and Amanda Sthers.
Hardwicke previously told IndieWire’s Kate Erbland that she strives to emphasize “complex female characters” onscreen.
“I think now, as women, we want to see somebody that takes charge of their life and does the very best they can in their power to escape, fight back, fight the system, fight all the men that are staring at her, the male gaze all the time that are putting their hands on her neck and forcing her to do things,” the “Miss Bala” director said. “I hope we get to keep making more movies with strong female characters. And that’s a key word, complex female characters that are going through a lot of things in their life, and have a rich life. I’m happy to fit in that category of people that are making that kind of movie, and really we just want to keep doing it.”
Up next, Hardwicke is set to direct “Heathen” about a female Viking based on the 2017 comic book series of the same name. “Heathen” is written by Stephanie Sanditz (“The High Life”) and Kerry Williamson (“What Happened to Monday”).
Meanwhile, “Mafia Mamma” lead star Collette stars in Bong Joon Ho’s upcoming sci-fi adaptation “Mickey 17” with Robert Pattinson. Steven Yeun, Mark Ruffalo, and “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” breakout Naomi Ackie round out the sci-fi thriller, produced by Brad Pitt’s Plan B Entertainment, Dooho Choi of Kate Street Picture Company, and director Bong under his Offscreen, Inc. banner.
“Mafia Mamma” premieres in theaters April 14 from Bleecker Street.
Check out the trailer below.
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