Most 'Osage County' actors and producers are old pals
By MICHAEL SMITH World Scene Writer on Oct 19, 2012, at 1:47 AM Updated on 10/19/12 at 5:15 AM
It's good to have connections in Hollywood. Just look at the cast of "August: Osage County," now filming north of Pawhuska.
You can't say that a talented performer with no connections to the filmmakers, who happened to be right for one of the dozen roles in the main cast, wouldn't have been named one of the co-stars. That apparently did happen for one role.
But there's no denying the fact that nearly every cast member has either worked in the past with another member of the cast, or the director, or one of the producers.
For the people responsible for bringing "August: Osage County's" dysfunctional Weston family to life, these are the ties that bind.
George Clooney
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(producer of "August: Osage County")
starred in "The Peacemaker" for executive producer John Wells
produced "Argo" with producing partner Grant Heslov
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Dermot Mulroney
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(plays Steve Heidebrecht, fiancee of Lewis' character)
co-starred with Julia Roberts in "My Best Friend's Wedding"
co-starred in "Burn After Reading" with George Clooney
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Julia Roberts
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(plays Barbara Fordham, the oldest Weston daughter)
co-starred with George Clooney in "Oceans Eleven," "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind" and "Oceans Twelve"
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Meryl Streep
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(plays Violet Weston, family matriarch)
voiced Mrs. Fox to Clooney's Mr. Fox in the animated "Fantastic Mr. Fox"
won her third Oscar in "The Iron Lady," released by the Weinstein Company
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Harvey Weinstein
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(producer of "August: Osage County")
produced "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind," which was directed by and co-starred George Clooney
produced "Spy Kids" and "Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over," which co-starred Clooney
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Ewan McGregor
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(plays Bill Fordham, separated husband of Roberts' character)
starred with George Clooney in "The Men Who Stare at Goats"
nominated for an Emmy for starring in an episode of "ER," produced by John Wells
starred in "Nightwatch," "Miss Potter" and "Little Voice," all executive produced by Harvey Weinstein
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John Wells
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(the director of "August: Osage County")
produced: "ER" in which George Clooney appeared in 109 episodes
directed "The Company Men," which co-starred Chris Cooper
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Abigail Breslin
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(plays Jean Fordham, daughter of characters played by Roberts and McGregor)
starred in "Kit Kittredge: An American Girl" executive produced by Julia Roberts
co-starred in "Valentine's Day" with Julia Roberts
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Misty Upham
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(plays Johnna, the housekeeper hired to clean the Weston's Pawhuska-area home)
co-starring in December's "Django Unchained," produced by Harvey Weinstein
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Julianne Nicholson
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(plays Ivy Weston, the middle daughter)
appeared in four episodes of "Presidio Med" on TV, produced by John Wells
appeared in two episodes of "ER," produced by Wells
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Grant Heslov
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(producer of "August: Osage County")
co-starred with his producing partner Clooney in their films "Good Night, and Good Luck" and the TV movie "Fail Safe"
co-produced "The Men Who Stare at Goats," "The Ides of March," "The American" and "Intolerable Cruelty" in which Clooney starred
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Sam Shepard
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(plays Beverly Weston, family patriarch)
co-starred with Ewan McGregor in "Black Hawk Down"
co-starred in "Steel Magnolias" with Julia Roberts
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Chris Cooper
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(plays Charlie Aiken, husband of Martindale's character)
co-starred with George Clooney in "Syriana"
co-starred in "The Company Men" directed by John Wells
won an Oscar acting opposite Meryl Streep in "Adaptation"
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Juliette Lewis
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(plays Karen Weston, the youngest daughter)
co-starred with George Clooney in "From Dusk till Dawn"
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Margo Martindale
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(plays Mattie Fae Aiken, sister of Streep's character)
co-starred with Chris Cooper in TV's "Lonesome Dove"
co-starred with Meryl Streep in "The Hours" and "Marvin's Room"
co-starred in "The Human Stain" executive produced by Harvey Weinstein
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Odd man out: Benedict Cumberbatch
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(playing "Little Charles" Aiken, the son of Cooper and Martindale's characters)
There is apparently no direct connection between Cumberbatch and any cast member, and it does not appear he's appeared in any of the production team's films. But with his BBC smash "Sherlock" becoming a hit in the U.S. on PBS, and his recent films ("War Horse") and upcoming ones (a viillain in the next "Star Trek" movie), he is a hot commodity.
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Michael Smith 918-581-8479
michael.smith@tulsaworld.com
Original Print Headline: Connected County
