Writer-director Shane Black may have been toiling away to his revised treatment for the long-in-development Predator sequel, with a first draft finally seeing completion during the week. But the filmmaker has also been busy behind the camera, too – all for Warner Bros. noir thriller The Nice Guys.
Starring Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe in the leading roles, it’s the former who toplines the R-rated thriller comedy as a private eye who, struggling to get a foothold in the business, hires Crowe’s towering muscle to reverse his fortunes.
Set against Los Angeles in the thick of the 70s, Black is clearly returning to a style and aesthetic that we’ve not seen since Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, and the director hinted that his latest effort will toe the line between action and comedy:
“Whether this thing is a comedy with action or a thriller with jokes, one thing that’s very clear is these two are extremely funny. People will enjoy seeing the two of them.”
Also starring Matt Bomer, Margaret Qualley and Kim Basinger, The Nice Guys has even been described as a “spiritual sequel” to the 2005 thriller, though it’ll be decidedly darker than the director’s breakout hit. Revolving around a web of entangled investigations and conspiracies, Gosling added that the chemistry between the leads is what really lends the film that Shane Black touch.
“It’s Shane Black. He’s a world unto himself. His world is so fun and crazy. I had such a great time. Russell Crowe is so funny in the movie. I can’t wait for people to see that in the movie. It’s not a side of himself that he shows very often, but he’s hysterical. It is an R-rated film and it’s a caper…It’s a little fast, a little funny and a little rough in places, kind of coarse. These guys are working-class dudes, they’re not really sophisticated private detectives, so it’s a chance to do the kind of thriller I don’t see too much of anymore.”
The Nice Guys will open in theaters on May 20, 2016.