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This weekend, Yann Demange’s White Boy Rick opens in theaters. The movie is based on the true story of Rick Wershe Jr. (Richie Merritt) who started out selling unlicensed firearms with his dad, Rick Sr. (Matthew McConaughey), in Detroit, but eventually became an FBI informant and a drug kingpin all before the age of 17. The film also stars Bel Powley, Rory Cochrane, RJ Cyler, Brian Tyree Henry, and Jennifer Jason Leigh.
While at TIFF last week, Scott Mantz sat down with Matthew McConaughey and director Yann Demange. During their conversation they talked the first meeting between McConaughey and Merritt, the importance of family in the movie, and putting the film on Merritt’s shoulders.
Check out the full interview above and a list of what was discussed below.
Matthew McConaughey and Yann Demange:
- The first meeting between McConaughey and Merritt.
- The importance of family in the movie.
- Putting the movie on Merritt’s shoulders.
Here’s the official synopsis for White Boy Rick:
Set in 1980s Detroit at the height of the crack epidemic and the War on Drugs, WHITE BOY RICK is based on the moving true story of a blue-collar father and his teenage son, Rick Wershe Jr., who became an undercover police informant and later a drug dealer, before he was abandoned by his handlers and sentenced to life in prison.
