“PIXELS” Production Information As kids in the 1980s, Sam Brenner (Adam Sandler), Will Cooper (Kevin James), Ludlow Lamonsoff (Josh Gad), and Eddie “The Fire Blaster” Plant (Peter Dinklage) saved the world thousands of times – at 25 cents a game in the video arcades. Now, they’re going to have to do it for real. In Pixels, when intergalactic aliens discover video feeds of classic arcade games and misinterpret them as a declaration of war, they attack the Earth, using the video games as the models for their assaults -- and now-U.S. President Cooper must call on his old-school arcade friends to save the world from being destroyed by PAC-MAN™, Donkey Kong™, Galaga™, Centipede®, and Space Invaders™. Joining them is Lt. Col. Violet Van Patten (Michelle Monaghan), a specialist supplying the arcaders with unique weapons to fight the aliens. Columbia Pictures presents in association with LStar Capital and China Film Co., Ltd., a Happy Madison / 1492 Pictures production in association with Film Croppers Entertainment, Pixels. Starring Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Michelle Monaghan, Peter Dinklage, Josh Gad, and Brian Cox. Directed by Chris Columbus. Produced by Adam Sandler, Chris Columbus, Mark Radcliffe, and Allen Covert. Screenplay by Tim Herlihy and Timothy Dowling. Screen Story by Tim Herlihy. Based on the short film by Patrick Jean. Executive producers are Barry Bernardi, Michael Barnathan, Jack Giarraputo, Steve Koren, Heather Parry, Patrick Jean, Benjamin Darras, Johnny Alves, Matias Boucard, Seth Gordon, and Ben Waisbren. Director of Photography is Amir Mokri. Production Designer is Peter Wenham. Edited by Hughes Winborne, ACE. Costume Designer is Christine Wada. Music by Henry Jackman. Pixels has been rated PG-13 by the Motion Picture Association of America for Some Language and Suggestive Comments. The film will be released in theaters nationwide on July 24, 2015. 1 IT’S ON LIKE DONKEY KONG Pixels is the summer tentpole action comedy in which aliens attack the Earth, using 1980s videogames as the model for their attacks, produced by Happy Madison and 1492 Pictures. Taking the helm of Pixels, Chris Columbus helped define 1980s movies as the writer of Gremlins and The Goonies, then went on to direct beloved, classic comedies like Home Alone and Mrs. Doubtfire, and help launch epic, special-effects blockbuster franchises like Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, and Night at the Museum, Columbus says that Pixels appealed to him in myriad ways. “Reading the Pixels script felt so original, so unique, that I just had to do it,” he says. “I loved the blend of comedy mixed with action, which gave me an opportunity to do something I hadn’t been able to do since Harry Potter. It enabled me to push the comedy as far as we could, but also create this very intense action adventure film. For me, it’s Gremlins meets Goonies meets Harry Potter – it gave me the opportunity to create something really fresh using the tools I had gathered over the years. It would be an original summer movie that took you back to the 80s in an evocative, nostalgic way.” The project stars Adam Sandler, who also serves as a producer of the film. Columbus says that being able to serve both roles benefits the project. “Adam has a great sense of comedy and is a very savvy producer,” says Columbus. “That’s a great combination, because – for example – he completely understands when something’s working and we can move on, or when something’s not working and needs a little more time to get it right.” The list of the film’s pixelated co-stars reads like an all-star team of the 1980s: PAC- MAN™, Donkey Kong™, Centipede®, Galaga™, Frogger, Q*bert™, and Space Invaders™, among many others. “These classic characters were part of the DNA of the project, so it was critical that we work together to bring them on board,” explains Allen Covert, one of the film’s producers. “Fortunately, they were all extremely receptive. We approached them with a deep love for their characters and a respect for the elements that make them unique and iconic, and we worked with the companies to incorporate 2 those elements into the film.” Partners included Atari Interactive, Inc. (Asteroids, Breakout, Centipede, Missile Command); Konami Digital Entertainment (Frogger); Bandai Namco Entertainment (PAC-MAN, Galaga, Dig Dug); Nintendo (Donkey Kong, Duck Hunt); Sony Computer Entertainment (Q*Bert); TAITO CORPORATION (Arkanoid, Space Invaders); and Warner Bros. Interactive (Paperboy, Joust, Defender, Robotron), G-MODE (BurgerTime), and TETRIS (Tetris). Columbus adds, “There would be no way to make the movie without these legendary characters – they are as important to the film as the roles that the actors are playing. It was a real thrill to see everything come together exactly as we envisioned it.” Executive Producer Michael Barnathan, who also serves as president of Columbus’ company, 1492 Pictures, adds that the filmmaking team also found 1980s inspiration in other ways. “I think everyone involved with this movie has a great love for the great summer action-comedies of the 1980s,” he says. “We definitely wanted a movie for today’s audiences, but our goal was also to capture something of the feel that made those movies so special – that mix of action and comedy that the movies of that era did so well.” Columbus says that one other reason he felt attracted to the project was the chance to make a film that would truly appeal to audiences of all ages. “Of course, the parents out there are going to remember playing these games at a video arcade, and their kids will be just as amazed by the characters – there are a hundred jokes in the movie that work for parents, and a hundred that work for their kids,” he says. “But it’s more than that. I think there’s a lot of nostalgia for these games and about the 80s in particular. I certainly hear it all the time – I talk to college kids and their favorite movie is The Goonies. There’s a lot of love for that era right now.” ABOUT THE CAST 3 To capture the comedy, the Happy Madison and 1492 filmmakers brought in an all-star cast of comedic film talent. Adam Sandler, who also produces the film, as well as Kevin James, Michelle Monaghan, Peter Dinklage, and Josh Gad make up the team of unlikely heroes who are called upon to save the world. “The five of them together are just so wonderful,” says Columbus. “There’s a natural camaraderie and real charisma between the five of them. They truly create a team.” Adam Sandler leads the way as Sam Brenner – once a video game world champion, and now a home theater installer. “Things haven’t quite gone his way over the past 30 years,” says Barnathan. “He’s gotten stuck in life. To be honest, it’s starting to seem like there’s only one thing he’s ever been really good at – playing videogames. Fortunately for us all, that one thing is about to come in really handy.” * * * Kevin James – who has starred opposite Sandler in several films – is called on to play Sandler’s best friend and the President of the United States of America. “With Kevin, we were not only playing against type, we were playing against the comedy,” says Columbus. “Kevin had to have a really strong presence – he had to feel presidential. And he played that role beautifully – when he completed the first scene as President Cooper, I completely believed him. He’s a wonderful actor, and capable of going much deeper than he has in the past.” In the film, James’ character, Will Cooper, has reached a political low. Everybody thinks all politicians are buffoonish oafs, but the American people really convinced of it with Cooper. “The general public is not a huge fan of my character,” James explains. “He’s not doing a lot of what he said he'd do, and he basically doesn't care. When he sees that the world is being attacked and it looks like videogames, he brings in his friends – who happen to be the greatest videogame players ever.” 4 You might think it would be difficult for James to act opposite a CG character, but the comedian got a lot of practice. “I replaced my family at home with tennis balls to get used to it,” he says. “They moved out of the house for a month and I replaced them with tennis balls everywhere – one was a Slazenger, one was a Wilson, and one was a Penn. As a parent, you’re always yelling at your kids about something – to eat or wipe or clean up – so I’d just yell at the tennis balls. I got pretty good at it and accustomed to it really quick.” * * * As President Cooper calls on Sam Brenner to put together an expert team of Arcaders to help fight the aliens, Brenner tracks down the now-grown men who were the champions as kids. Josh Gad joins the cast as Ludlow Lamonsoff, the youngest member of the Arcaders. “He’s a little younger than the other guys – he was kind of the Wonder Kid,” says Gad. Once the child prodigy amongst the gamers, he’s now a conspiracy theorist who never quite got over his childhood crush on Lady Lisa, the cartoonish lead character in Dojo Quest, his favorite game from back in the day. “Tim Herlihy and Timothy Dowling wrote a character that was really eccentric – and I’m no stranger to eccentric characters,” says the star of Broadway’s “The Book of Mormon” and the voice of Olaf the snowman in Frozen.