Warner Bros. has decided to lose “Bastards” as the title for its Ed Helms-Owen Wilson road comedy, opting instead for “Father Figures.”
The studio is keeping the Dec. 22 release date for the Alcon Entertainment production.
J.K. Simmons and former pro football player Terry Bradshaw, who is playing himself, are potential father figures to Wilson and Helms’ characters — who are brothers whose eccentric mother raised them to believe their father died when they were young. When they discover this to be a lie, they set out to find their real father.
The brothers’ mother Helen Baxter (portrayed Glenn Close) admits at her wedding that she stretched the truth about their father dying when they were young. “I’m not sure who your father was,” she says in the first trailer for the film.
Ving Rhames, June Squibb, Katt Williams, and model Jessica Gomes — who plays the love interest of Wilson’s character — also star.
Lawrence Sher, who shot the “Hangover” films, directs from a screenplay by Justin Malen. Producers are Broderick Johnson, Andrew A. Kosove, Ivan Reitman, Tom Pollock, and Ali Bell. Chris Fenton and Chris Cowles are executive producing.
“Bastards” was scheduled for release on Jan. 27 this year, but was then moved to a Christmas date.
