Rebel Wilson Feeling The 'Pain And Gain'

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by Ryan Gowland
March 28, 2012 8:40 AM
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After a scene-stealing turn as Kristen Wiig's annoying roommate in "Bridesmaids" (aided in no small part by Matt Lucas), Rebel Wilson wasted no time capitalizing on the movie's success, grabbing roles in Hollywood projects faster than you can say "Melissa McCarthy." This year alone, Wilson is already set to appear in the Chris Colfer-penned, coming-of-age comedy "Struck By Lightning" (debuting at the Tribeca Film Festival next month), Lionsgate's ensemble pregnancy comedy "What to Expect When You're Expecting" in May, The Weinstein Company's not-a-"Bridesmaids"-sequel-but-get-confused-and-buy-a-ticket-anyway comedy "Bachelorette" in June, and in Fox's animated sequel "Ice Age: Continental Drift" in July. If that wasn't enough, the Australian actress has already wrapped the musical comedy "Pitch Perfect," and has lined up her next project, Michael Bay's "Pain And Gain."

Based on a 2000 Miami New Times article, the film follows a couple of body builders (Dwayne Johnson and Mark Wahlberg) who kidnap and rob a wealthy businessman (Tony Shaloub) in an extortion scheme that doesn't end well when the businessman survives the ordeal and hires a private investigator (Ed Harris) to help him exact revenge. How Wilson figures into the story is unclear, as details about her character are brief and potentially spoiler-ish, but, according to EW, Wilson will play Ramona Eldridge, who "winds up in prison for her involvement in the scheme."

The film represents a huge change of pace for Bay, as the "Transformers" director hasn't directed anything remotely close to a dark comedy before. Those anticipating that the action-comedy of "Bad Boys" might be a guide for Bay's approach, think again, as Bay has said that "Pain And Gain" won't feature much action. Still, Bay isn't completely devoid of his usual tricks, casting Israeli supermodel Bar Paly in the role of Wahlberg's love interest last month.

Production is set to start in Miami this spring. Anthony Mackie and Rob Corddry will co-star.

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