Steve Carell takes audiences on a
humorous, moving, and intimate journey against an epic backdrop of Earth’s
final days, in Focus Features' critically acclaimed comedy “Seeking a Friend
for the End of the World.”
Set
in a too-near future where time at once stands still and is slipping away
forever, the film explores what people will do and how they will feel when
humanity’s end is near.
“Seeking
a Friend” will be shown soon exclusively at Ayala Malls Cinemas (Glorietta 4,
Greenbelt3 and Trinoma).
In
the film, a 70-mile-wide asteroid is en route to Earth, and the last best
attempt to counter it has failed. Also failing is the marriage of soft-spoken
insurance salesman Dodge (Carell); the breaking news that the world will end in
an estimated 21 days cues his wife to leave him on the spot.
Dodge
is a man who has always played by the rules of life, while his neighbor Penny
(Keira Knightley) is an extroverted woman who hasn’t. From these opposite
perspectives, both initially choose to navigate the impending end of the world
with blinders on.
Producer
Joy Gorman Wettels says, "The lead role of Dodge is that of a man who,
with the world now coming to end, realizes that he regrets his entire life. An
insurance salesman by trade, he hasn't taken risks in his existence. He thinks
of his long-ago love - and is moved to act on that yearning.
"In
order for this to play believably on-screen, Dodge has to be someone that you
can see yourself in, or your dad, your brother, your husband. Steve Carell
engenders so much goodwill and conveys such warmth; he is an Everyman. People
relate to him; he was the only choice for Dodge."
Carell
remarks, "I read the script and could not stop thinking about it. It
haunted me, to an extent. It was funny, sweet, emotionally intense at times,
and a story that I hadn't seen. This is the flip side of `Armageddon,' there's
no president with a hot line to the astronauts who are going to blow up the
asteroid. `Seeking a Friend for the End of the World' is what's happening while
all of those things are going on; how ordinary human beings respond, and the
choices they make when they know that everything is going to be over in a
matter of days.”
The
actor honed in on his character straight away, noting, "Initially, Dodge
doesn't want to deal with what's happening; he continues to go to his job. But
then he decides to come to terms with his impending demise and with the end of
the world; he is going to make a pilgrimage, to visit his high-school
sweetheart Olivia and try to reconnect with her. He's always idealized her as
the love of his life, and before it all ends, he wants to be with her."
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| Steve Carell |
"I
think this, in a big way, is what our movie is about: people connecting with
one another, or attempting to, when faced with something momentous. Your
perspective changes," says Carell.
Director
Lorene Scafaria compares Carell to "actors who could do comedy with pitch
perfect timing but also be subtle and still, like Peter Sellers or Jack Lemmon;
Steve can do so much with a look.
"We
were ridiculously lucky to have him. When making a movie, he is a
collaborative, generous, kindhearted gentleman."
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