Ever wonder what would happen if James Dean met the Manson family? Well, Sean Patrick Flanery might have the answer in his newest project, and Collider can exclusively reveal the first images from the director’s feature film debut, Frank and Penelope, an all-new action film from producer Scott Dolezal.
Based on an original idea by John Thaddeus, Frank and Penelope tells the story of a down on his luck young man (Billy Budinich) who, while on an emotionally burnt-out road to nowhere, runs across a run-down strip club that happens to contain the love of his life, Penelope (Caylee Cowan). Finding that their broken pieces fit together perfectly, the two head west with no destination in mind before running into the Table of Truth, a group led by a charismatic cult leader with a knack for digging up traveler’s darkest secrets. With nothing to live for, Frank and Penelope now have everything to die for, finding themselves in a bloody battle for love in an unforgiving world.
Frank and Penelope is Flanery’s fourth collaboration with Dolezal, an “eccentric, offbeat” project with the air of Rebel Without a Cause and a passion project for Flanery, who previously only worked with Dolezal in front of the camera:
“I know that some dreams have more nutritional value than food, and that every one not acted on will eventually morph into regret. And, while I’ve had opportunities to direct in the past, none came with the old school auteur style carte blanche that Scott Dolezal was offering… to truly write without reins and shoot without guidelines. That phone call was one of the most wonderful creative opportunities to have ever befallen me. And it’s not lost on me that these completely unbridled opportunities are unicorns in today’s Hollywood… but I’ve now seen that one horned f**ker up close, and I want a herd.”
Also starring Kevin Dillon, Johnathon Schaech, Lin Shaye, Donna D’Errico, and Sonya Eddy, Frank and Penelope will premiere on June 1, 2022. Check out more new images below:
