Frankie Shaw Joins Jeff Ward In His Crime Thriller ‘Strangers’

EXCLUSIVE: Frankie Shaw (SMILF) will star opposite Jeff Ward (Danny and the Deep Blue Sea) in Strangers, a romantic crime thriller he’s directing from a script by Dan Schimpf.

Currently in production, the film follows two lonely strangers who, after a chance encounter at a bar, fall in love while hatching a plan to rob the bank she’s being laid off from. Further details are under wraps, but the project has been described as Before Sunrise descending into Good Time.

Others set for key roles include Eric Lange (Escape at Dannemora) and Katie Finneran (The Gilded Age).

Producers on the project include Billy Hines, Bailey Jones, Ward, Schimpf, Allison Friedman, and Jayne Sherman. Ruth Shaber, Glenn Barnes, and J. Andrew Greenblatt are exec producing, with Lynette Aslanian associate producing, and Co Created Media serving as the production company.

Golden Globe-nominated for her starring role in the Showtime dramedy SMILF, which she also created, wrote and directed, Shaw more recently made her feature directorial debut on 4 Kids Walk into a Bank, a forthcoming dark comedy starring Liam Neeson to be released by Amazon MGM’s Orion Pictures. She is represented by WME, Entertainment 360, and Ziffren Brittenham.

Known for roles in Escape at Dannemora, Marvel’s Thunderbolts, Narcos, Lost and more, Lange just wrapped on Greyhound 2 opposite Tom Hanks. He is repped by Innovative and Trademark Talent.

Finneran is a two-time Tony Award winner who has been seen on screen in shows like Netflix’s Bloodline and HBO’s The Gilded Age. She is repped by Innovative and Principal Entertainment LA.

Ward is coming off directing the critically lauded and sold-out Off-Broadway run of Danny and the Deep Blue Sea, starring Aubrey Plaza and Christopher Abbott, and produced by Sam Rockwell. As an actor, he gained recognition for his work in Hacks, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Brand New Cherry Flavor, PEN15, and One Piece. He is repped by Range Media Partners and Schreck Rose Dapello.

Best known for creating, showrunning and directing Big Time in Hollywood, FL, a Comedy Central series exec produced by Ben Stiller, Schimpf has also directed on the series Miracle Workers (TBS) and Man Seeking Woman (FXX). He is repped by Mosaic, CAA, and Ginsburg Daniels Kallis.

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