Director Mukunda Michael Dewil brings to theaters a gripping thriller, COLLIDE which chronicles three couples over the course of one fateful night in a restaurant set in Los Angeles.
Hunter [Ryan Phillippe] finds himself on an uncomfortable blind date with the striking Tamira [Kat Graham] while simultaneously a busboy [Dylan Flashner] and his girlfriend [Aisha Dee] are hiding loads of cocaine to cash out and start a new life together. Meanwhile, Peter [Jim Gaffigan] is outside the restaurant observing his wife [Drea de Matteo] as she has an affair with the restaurant’s manager [David Cade]. Their stories weave together as the film hurdles to an explosive end. “In COLLIDE I wanted to show the poignant tragedy of existence. Yes, it’s a contained thriller and has the traditional building of suspense that makes this genre work but while people come for these elements, they stay for the humanness of it all,” states Dewil.
“My privileged life was built on the suffering of others,” states Phillippe’s character Hunter while addressing some uncomfortable truths he has come to realize. The film delves into conversations of race, generational trauma, racism, forgiveness, family, redemption, and several factors that make up the human existence. “I like when things are uncomfortable man. I think that man people need to explore those aspects of life and about the realities of existence, so I think the more awkward things are, the more appealing they are to me,” shares Phillippe. COLLIDE finds that exquisite balance between meaning and mayhem.
Fans may be surprised to see six-time Grammy nominated comedian Jim Gaffigan known for his unique brand of humor playing in a thriller. Although this is nothing new for Gaffigan who has starred in several indie thrillers in recent years including Chappaquiddick, American Dreamer, and Tesla. “Over the past couple of years, I’ve been doing a bunch of indies and dramatic roles and so I was sent this script by Makunda and I loved the character, I liked the challenge of finding this character Peter, a version of him in myself,” shared Gaffigan.
COLLIDE is in theaters August 5, 2022, and On Demand August 12, 2022.
