About My Father screens in Chicago with a family affair

Lionsgate Entertainment Company roared through the city of Chicago with a star studded red carpet at a special Saturday night screening of the new film About My Father.

This early presentation was held at AMC River East 21 on Illinois Street on May 6, 2023 and was packed with friends and family in support of the personal project from comedian Sebastian Maniscalco.

About My Father is the story of Sebastian Maniscalco's relationship with his father Salvo and their adventures while spending time with his fiancé's family over the course of a weekend.

Two time Oscar winner Robert De Niro plays the pesky padre and Leslie Bibb plays Sebastian's bride to be Ellie Collins. Her family includes Kim Cattrall as Tigger, David Rasche as Bill, Anders Holm as Lucky and Brett Dier as Doug.

The main cast attended the hometown screening for Maniscalco and answered questions briefly before sitting down in the theater.

Director Laura Terruso spoke on the gay wedding scene within About My Father, “Those are real gay men that I found in Mobile, Alabama, which was no easy feat! [laughs] No, I am kidding, Alabama was more inclusive than I thought it would be with Pride flags everywhere. People were very open and I was surprised.”

For Pride this year Terruso said she would be with her girlfriend and declared “that Jonathan Van Ness' cameo in the movie made my day. If anyone is going to be an expert on hair it is them!”

Catrall interacted with Van Ness onscreen as an homage to her longtime advocacy with the LGBTQ+ community. She confessed her short hair in the film took some getting used to and blowing smoke rings with De Niro was a highlight that she will never forget.

David Rasche played her husband Bill Collins and describes him as “someone who always tries to patch up the things he screwed up the day before.”

He mentioned growing up in Illinois and how it was a difficult decision for him to leave the state to pursue a bigger career which led him to appear on the popular TV series Succession. When talking about the show he stated that the writing is “superb” and “all kudos go to the brilliant creator Jessie Armstrong.”

Holm stopped to chat about his character and was asked if Lucky might possibly being in the closet, he said, “I don't think he's gay, but I have a feeling that at least one time something happened with him and another man. He didn't seem to hate it too much! [laughs]”

He went on to say that Lucky was fun to play because he was “the loudest one in the room and not like myself. I loved the clothing he wore too!”

The talented actor has two new television series debuting in the near future with The Muppets Mayhem on Disney+ and Godzilla and the Titans on Apple TV+. Holm picked Gonzo as his favorite Muppet from the eclectic cast.

Fellow Father cast member Bibb also has an Apple TV+ project with miniseries Palm Royale from out producer of The Eyes of Tammy Faye Abe Sylvia. She exclaimed, “The gay community is going to love it and Ricky Martin is part of the cast along with the hilarious Kristen Wiig and the legendary Carol Burnett.”

Bibb confessed to eating 27 hot dogs during the filming of Father. “This is going to sound very Hollywood, but I have a gluten intolerance so I had to have special buns!”

Speaking of buns, in one revealing scene Sebastian flies in the air on a jet ski and loses his pants. “That was not me and he was a body double. My wife would like everyone to know I have a better ass than that.” He joked, “If people leave with anything from the movie, they need to know that is not my ass!

When asked about a sequel to About My Father possibly with a gay uncle, Maniscalco explained, “I have talked about it and my mother wants to be in the next one! Maybe this will be a franchise. Who knows? I am just trying to relish the moment right now. I look down this red carpet and see my real life family here with people like Kim Cattrall. It is all very surreal!”

About My Father brings a family affair to the box office on May 26, 2023.