CAST AND CHARACTER BREAKDOWNS BRYAN BROWN - Barry Ryan BARRY RYAN runs the shady end of town: SP bookies, girls, poker machines. A leader among hard men, he is a genuine and likeable fella. But when the going gets tough, he'll have to be as ruthless as they come or he'll lose everything. BRYAN BROWN is one of Australia's most respected actors and relished the chance to work with David Caesar as both the star of DIRTY DEEDS and as producer. "It's fun because it's a very well crafted piece, and the characters are very full and vibrant," he says. "They're not subtle." Bryan Brown starred in the Emmy Award-winning "A Town Like Alice" and received both Emmy and Golden Globe Award nominations for "The Thorn Birds". He also won an Australian Film Institute Award (AFI) for his role in the acclaimed feature film "Breaker Morant". In 1999 he won an AFI Best Supporting Actor Award for "Two Hands". Bryan began his career in British theatre, which included two seasons of repertory at Billingham, under the direction of Timothy West, and a year with the National Theatre of Great Britain, under the direction of Peter Hall. Returning to Australian in the mid-70s, he quickly established a reputation as one of Australia's most talented actors, with roles in some of the finest films of the period, including Phil Noyce's "Newsfront", "Weekend Of Shadows", "The Irishman", "Love Letters From Teralba Road", "The Chant Of Jimmy Blacksmith" and "The Odd Angry Shot". His role in Bruce Beresford's "Breaker Morant", a seminal film in the emergence of a mature Australian film industry, won international acclaim. Bryan went on to starring roles in "A Town Like Alice", "Winter Of Our Dreams" (co-starring Judy Davis, directed by John Duigan), "Far East" (co-starring Helen Morse, directed by John Duigan) and the Paul McCartney Productions' "Give My Regards To Broadstreet". International recognition continued to grow with starring roles in "F/X", "Taipan", "Blame It On The Bellboy", "Gorillas In The Mist", co-starring Sigourney Weaver and "Cocktail", co-starring Tom Cruise. In recent years Bryan has turned his hand to developing projects as a producer, including the critically acclaimed feature film "Dead Heart" (in which he also starred) and the television series "Twisted Tales". Bryan also appeared in the UK television series "The Wanderer", the US mini- series "20,000 Leagues Under The Sea", opposite Michael Caine, the US telemovies "Dogboys" (directed by Ken Russell) and "Journey To The Centre Of the Earth", the Australian romantic comedy "Dear Claudia" and the Australian box office hit "Two Hands", for which he won a 1999 Australian Film Institute Award for Best Supporting Actor. Most recently he starred with his wife Rachel Ward in the telemovie "On The Beach", which was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and received an Australian Film Institute Award. As well as starring as Barry Ryan, Bryan also acted as producer of DIRTY DEEDS, helping David Caesar coax the story from conception more than five years ago to the final product. "There's no conflict in being an actor and producer," Bryan says. "There's just more bloody time spent telling the story. As an actor you walk in, do your job, you walk out, get paid and it's all over after the number of weeks you're on. With this, as a producer, I'm now in my sixth year with this project. It's a long time." Co-producer Deborah Balderstone says that while some actors are not able to successfully juggle roles behind and in front of the cameras, Bryan managed both with characteristic aplomb. "It's quite amazing actually, because you have preconceptions about working in a producer's role with an actor - but the thing about Bryan is that he's exceptionally hard working and honest and so smart," she says. "He's great with business and numbers. He just has such an incredible force of character, so it's just been the best experience ever." TONI COLLETTE - Sharon Ryan SHARON RYAN is Barry's wife and the mother of his son. Loyal, loving and tough, she is determined to remain the number one woman in Barry's life and equally determined that he remains the number one gangster in town. TONI COLLETTE has never been afraid of an acting challenge and DIRTY DEEDS has given her the opportunity to add yet another character to her already impressive collection of on-screen alter egos. And while she is often praised - and awarded - for her on-screen intensity, it was the comic aspects of DIRTY DEEDS which most appealed to the chameleon-like actress. "I play randy, shandy Shaz," she laughs. "I'm the strong, capable, all powerful power behind the man. I'm not quite a gangster's moll, but I'm quite proud if you call me that anyway. It's the first time (playing this sort of role), but maybe not the last. It's mighty enjoyable." As well as giving her a much-appreciated opportunity to work on home turf, Toni relished the opportunity to take a slightly comic skewed look at a less than pristine slice of Australian society. "I loved that you got to experience the horrific side of gangster's paradise, but you also got to walk away with the innocence of the Darcy character, and not feel like you've betrayed humanity as a whole by partaking for an hour or so." Toni Collette made an indelible impression on Hollywood with her beautiful portrayal of the hopeless and desperate Muriel Heslop in P.J. Hogan's 1994 film "Muriel's Wedding", for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and won an Australian Film Institute Award as Best Actress. Toni has since starred in a variety of roles. Academy Award-nominated for her role in Buena Vista's highly successful box office hit drama "The Sixth Sense", directed by M. Night Shyamalan, Toni played a mother from South Philadelphia who must cope with the physical and emotional distress surrounding her young son's paranormal powers. Most recently she played the female lead opposite Hugh Grant in the Weitz brothers-directed "About A Boy" for Universal Pictures and took a small role in "The Hours", directed by Stephen Daldry, for producer Scott Rudin and Paramount Pictures. She also starred opposite Ben Affleck in "Changing Lanes" for Paramount. Toni was also in the remake of "Shaft", with Samuel L. Jackson and the independent film "The Boys," from Australian director Rowan Woods, which was adapted from Gordon Graham's play. "The Boys" was shown in competition at the 1998 Berlin Film Festival and Toni won an Australian Film Institute Award as Best Supporting Actress for her role. On Broadway, Toni starred as "Queenie" in the acclaimed production of "The Wild Party", alongside Mandy Patinkin and Eartha Kitt. In this role Toni had the opportunity to display her extraordinary range as an actress and singer. She received a Tony Award nomination for Best Performance By An Actress In A Musical and won the Theatre World Award for Outstanding New Performance in a Broadway Production. Toni appeared as Mandy Slade, the wife of a fictional glam-rock star, in the 1998 critically acclaimed Miramax film "Velvet Goldmine." She also delivered an unforgettable performance as Harriet Smith in Miramax's 1996 adaptation of Jane Austen's "Emma" which also starred Gwyneth Paltrow and Ewan McGregor. Her other film credits include "The Clockwatchers", "Lilian's Story", Mark Joffe's "Spotswood", "Cosi" and "8 1/2 Women". Toni is currently working on Japanese story. JOHN GOODMAN - Tony Testano TONY TESTANO is a world-weary Chicago mobster. Tough but softening around the edges, he is increasingly dissatisfied with mob life. His mission to Sydney is his last chance to make good with his superiors. He comes home with the goods or he comes home in a box. JOHN GOODMAN believes he was doubly blessed with his role in DIRTY DEEDS. "What appealed to me in the very beginning is that it was a great story - and a great chance to come to Australia," he says. Although he admits to "having eaten about half of NSW" during Broken Hill's dust storms and to being bugged by the ever present flies, with production completed he's now no less enthusiastic about the film or the exotic, and somewhat challenging, locations. "The character, like myself, has never been here before," he says. "I can't wait to come back and bring my family. I've been able to see things that I'd never see at home. They don't have any kangaroos in Louisiana." John Goodman is one of the entertainment industry's most respected actors. He earned a Golden Globe nomination in 1992 for his chilling performance in the Coen Brothers' heralded "Barton Fink". His breakthrough motion picture performance was in "Raising Arizona", also a Coen Brothers' film. Since then, he has teamed with the Coen Brothers in two more films, "The Big Lebowski" and "O Brother, Where Art Thou?". John has also given many highly acclaimed television performances. He received Emmy nominations for his starring role in TNT's "Kingfish: A Story of Huey P. Long" and for his role as Mitch in the CBS production of Tennessee Williams' "A Streetcar Named Desire". For eight seasons, Goodman played Dan Conner in "Roseanne", a role that earned him seven Emmy nominations and a Golden Globe. He has now teamed up again with the producers of "Roseanne", Carsey-Werner, for the situation comedy "Normal, Ohio" for Fox. John's other film credits include "The Flintstones", "Mother Night", "Arachnophobia", "Always", "Pie In the Sky", "Born Yesterday", "Matinee", "The Babe", "King Ralph", "Punchline", "Everybody's All-American", "Sea Of Love", "Stella", "Eddie Macon's Run", "C.H.U.D.", "Revenge Of The Nerds", "Maria's Lovers", "Sweet Dreams", "True Stories", "The Big Easy", "Burglar", "The Wrong Guys", "Fallen", "The Borrowers", "Blues Brothers 2000", "The Runner", "Bringing Out The Dead" and the HBO movie "The Jack Bull". Recently John has starred in "One Night at McCool's", "O Brother, Where Art Thou?", "Coyote Ugly" and "What Planet Are You From?". SAM NEILL - Ray RAY is a police detective. As corrupt as they come but still concerned with everything looking lawful and peaceful. Otherwise the lucrative arrangement between crooks and cops will go belly up. He'll side with whoever can keep the peace, be it Barry or someone else. SAM NEILL's role was a crucial place to fill in the DIRTY DEEDS ensemble. "When we have the scenes with Sam and John Goodman and Toni and Bryan all there, it's like 'wow, this is really a big movie'," says producer Deborah Balderstone. The obvious and easy-going camaraderie between real-life mates Sam and Bryan Brown was a bonus for both the finished product, and for those watching the pair's performances behind the scenes. "The first day on set, the two of them couldn't keep a straight face," Deborah says. "They had this incredible power on the screen, doing this really heavy stuff on the first day they were together, where Sam's character had to give Bryan's a dressing down in front of the young policemen. It was really one of the most hilarious things I've ever seen, seeing the two of them trying to keep a straight face." Sam Neill's long and distinguished career has featured collaborations with some of the most powerful and respected names in the Australian and international film and television industries. Sam's most recent credits include Ralph Ziman's "The Zookeeper", shot in Prague with Om Puri and Gina McKee, Joe Johnston's "Jurassic Park III" for Universal, and Chris Columbus' "Bicentennial Man" starring Robin Williams. He appeared in "The Horse Whisperer" with Robert Redford and Kristen Scott Thomas and Peter Duncan's "Children Of The Revolution" with Judy Davis. He also appeared in Michael Hoffman's "Restoration" with Robert Downey Jr., Meg Ryan and Hugh Grant, having played opposite him previously in John Duigan's "Sirens". Jane Campion's "The Piano" garnered him an Australian Film Institute Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor in 1993. The same year he was named New Zealand Entertainer of the Year. He also appeared in Steven Spielberg's "Jurassic Park". In 1991 Sam was nominated for an Australian Film Institute Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role for "Death In Brunswick" directed by John Ruane, and he also receive an Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to acting. Sam appeared in John McTiernan's "The Hunt For Red October" with Sean Connery and Philip Noyce's "Dead Calm" opposite Nicole Kidman and has enjoyed a long association with Fred Schepisi, starring in "Evil Angels" and "Plenty", co- starring with Meryl Streep in both features. He received an Australian Film Institute Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for "Evil Angels". He appeared in Mark Lamprell's directorial debut "My Mother Frank" for which he was nominated for an Australian Film Institute Award for Best Supporting Actor, and was the voice of Sam Sawnoff in the animated feature "The Magic Pudding". In television, Sam has been honoured three times with Golden Globe Nominations, most recently in 1998 for Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini Series for "Merlin". He also received an Emmy Nomination for the same role. He recently completed "Framed", directed by Daniel Petrie Jr, "Submerged" and a six-part science series "The Final Frontier" for the BBC. Other television credits include Thomas Jefferson in the CBS telemovie "Sally Hemings: An American Scandal", "Reilly Ace of Spies", "One Against the Wind" and "Kane and Abel". SAM WORTHINGTON - Darcy DARCY is Barry and Sharon's nephew. Fresh from military service in Vietnam, he's looking for a life where he doesn't take orders and for someone to share it with. Barry's world might offer him that, but can Darcy handle the crooked life of crime and killing? SAM WORTHINGTON doesn't hesitate when listing the many things that appealed to him about DIRTY DEEDS. There's Bryan Brown ("I grew up watching that bloke"), his character's journey ("he's seen one war and doesn't want to see another one"), action, adventure, car chases, guns and... "It made me laugh because they talk like me," he says, in his distinctly broad Aussie drawl. "It was really ocker, and I like that." Sam Worthington, who Bryan Brown describes as having "a great presence", and who producer Deborah Balderstone says will "go on to be a huge star" graduated from Australia's prestigious National Institute of Dramatic Art in 1998. He received critical acclaim for his first professional role as Arthur Wellesley in the Belvoir Street Theatre production of "Judas Kiss", directed by Neil Armfield. In 1999 Sam made his feature film debut in Fox Searchlight's "Bootmen", directed by Dein Perry. He received an Australian Film Institute Award nomination for Best Actor for his role. Most recently he starred opposite Bruce Willis in Twentieth Century Fox's "Harts War" shot on location in Prague. Numerous television appearances include "Blue Heelers", "Backberner", "Jag" and "Water Rats". KESTIE MORASSI - Margaret MARGARET is Barry's mistress. More than a bit on the side, Margaret has big plans and a mouth and attitude to match. If she can't be Barry's number one, then she'll move on to better things, whether he likes it or not. KESTIE MORASSI had to be able to appear all things to all people to score her first major feature film role. "It was really tough to cast (Margaret) because we really needed someone who was able to play Bryan's character's lover, but who also had an innocence about her which allowed her to fall in love with the innocent Darcy," says producer Deborah Balderstone. After an exhaustive search and audition schedule, Kestie scored the complex role, which is destined to be a showcase of what a truly diverse and complex array of emotions the rising star is capable of bringing to the screen. "From the minute she came on call, all the chemistry that she had to pull off worked tremendously," Deborah says. Writer and director David Caesar says he relished the opportunity to guide the relative newcomer through the pivotal role: "I had a much more hands on approach with Kestie than I did with some of the more experienced actors and it paid off in the end. She did an amazing job." Kestie Morassi graduated from the National Theatre Drama School in 1994 and spent five years working with Michele Williams at Drama With A Difference. Film credits include the short films "The Merchant Of Fairness", "Miss Tauras" for which she won Best Actress at the Watch My Shorts Festival in 1999 and "Pretty Penny". Television credits include guest roles in Alliance Atlantis' "Beastmaster Series III", Crawford Productions' "Saddle Club", "Crash Zone 2", "Eugenie Sandler PI" directed by Ana Kokkinos, "Flipper", "State Coroner" and "Neighbours". Theatre credits include "Off The Point" at La Mama Theatre, directed by David Symons, and "The Brink" at the Polyglot Theatre. FELIX WILLIAMSON - Sal Cassela SAL CASSELA is a headkicker with the Chicago mob. He's less a diplomat than a killer. He enjoys the blood and guts and his answer to everything is shoot first and forget about the questions. FELIX WILLIAMSON's obsession with dialects served him well in DIRTY DEEDS. The Australian actor with a talent for turning his tongue to accents, went to town playing the sharp-dressing mobster from Chicago. "When I was a kid I used to watch the Kenny Everett Video Show, which was full of dialects," Felix says. "And I did a lot of dialects at drama school...I really prefer to work with them. Like Eddie Murphy prefers to work with a prosthetic head on, I prefer to work with a different voice. I find it easier. It's escapist." One thing Felix wasn't able to escape on set was his awe at working alongside John Goodman. "When I found out he was going to be in it I just flipped," he laughs. "I admire him so much. I love him in all the Coen brothers' films. I was terribly excited. "One of the first scenes I had was with Sam Neill and John Goodman, and there are the three of our names on the call sheet, and I'm like 'one name here is wrong, one has to be a typo'. "It was terrifying. It's like playing tennis with Boris Becker - they just keep throwing things right back at you." Felix Williamson studied at the Australian Theatre for Young People. In 1998 he appeared in "Henry Limper" and "A Midsummer Night's Dream" with the Gloucester Stage Company in Massachusetts. Film credits include the role of Sam Burlington in "My Brother Jack", Scott in Rebel Penfold-Russell's "WillFull", Rats in Yahoo Serious' "Mr Accident", Geoff in "Me, Myself, I" starring Rachel Griffiths, Neill in Emma-Kate Crogan's "Strange Planet", "Babe II", Terrence Malick's "The Thin Red Line", "Welcome To Whoop Whoop", "Thank God He Met Lizzie" and "Dust Off The Wings". Television credits include the Jim Henson Company's hit Sci-fi series "Farscape", the ABC's "The Road From Coorain", "A Difficult Woman" and "Wildside", "Murder Call", "Water Rats", "Rescue", "Mission Top Secret" and "A Country Practice". Theatre credits include the role of Kel in Sydney Theatre Company's production of "Up For Grabs", directed by Gale Edwards, "Sun Kisses", Gratiano in "The Merchant Of Venice" directed by Richard Wherrett for the Bell Shakespeare Company, Sydney Theatre Company's "Pygmalion", "Elegies", "Bouncers", "Sanctuary" for the Playbox Theatre, Billy in "The Rise And Fall Of Little Voice", "Six Degrees Of Separation" for Sydney Theatre Company, "The Heartbreak Kid" for the Ensemble Theatre and "Matilda". WILLIAM McINNES - Hollywood TOM "HOLLYWOOD" REILLY is Barry's right-hand man. He's a pragmatic gangster who knows you have to move with the times, especially if you want to maintain an E- type Jaguar and a playboy lifestyle. WILLIAM MCINNES graduated from the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts in 1988. His role as Max Conners in the ABC's acclaimed series "SeaChange" turned him overnight into a national heartthrob. He received the 2000 Silver Logie Award for "Most Popular Actor" and the 1999 People's Choice Award for "Favourite Male in a TV Drama". Film credits include "Turtle Beach", "The Heartbreak Kid", "Broken Highway" and "Drover's Boy". Numerous television credits include "Rubicon", "My Brother Jack", "The Lost World", "Blue Heelers", in which he starred as Constable Nick Schultz over a period of five years, "Ocean Girl", "Embassy", "Rafferty's Rules" and "Shadows Of The Heart". Having begun his career in the theatre, his numerous roles include Darcy in the Melbourne and Sydney Theatre Company's production of "Pride and Prejudice", the lead role in Melbourne Theatre Company's production of "Art", Victor in "Private Lives", Dennis in "Loot", Macbeth in the Melbourne Theatre Company's "Macbeth", John Proctor in "The Crucible", O'Brien in "1984 George Orwell" directed by Geoffrey Rush, Autolycus in "A Winter's Tale" and "Who's A Pretty Poli" which McInnes also directed. ANDREW S. GILBERT - Norm NORM is Barry's front-row foot soldier. He's a lovely, loyal bloke who enjoys smashing rival poker machines and rivals alike. ANDREW S. GILBERT is one of Australia's best known character actors. Andrew was nominated for Australian Film Institute Awards for his roles in Bill Bennett's "Kiss or Kill" and "In A Savage Land". Other film credits include Phil Noyce's "Rabbit Proof Fence", a starring role in David Caesar's "Mullet", Working Dog's "The Dish", "Paperback Hero", David Caesar's "Idiot Box", "The Custodian", "Shotgun Wedding" and "Sweet Talker". Television credits include "Round The Twist" in which he played Tony Twist, "Blue Heelers", "Wildside", "Water Rats", "Cody", Home And Away", "The Saint In Australia", "A Country Practice", "Rafferty's Rules, "Police Rescue" and Kennedy Miller's "Bodyline". Theatre credits include leading roles in Neil Armfield's "Small Poppies", "Swallowed Hole", which Andrew also directed, Michael Gow's "Welcome To Broome", the Griffin Theatre Company's "Mr Melancholy", Crossroads Theatre's "The Slab Boys", "After Dinner" and "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead". GARRY WADDELL - Freddie FREDDIE KELLY is Barry's sworn enemy in the poker machine racket. He's a sneaky ferret who'd do anything to knock Barry off his perch. And a deal with the mafia might be his big chance. GARY WADDELL was most recently seen as Kevin Darcy in Mushroom Pictures' acclaimed feature film "Chopper". Other film credits include "Heaven's Burning", "Sweet Talker", "Breaking Loose", "Blue Lightning", "Monkey Grip", "Stir", "Blue Fire Lady", "In Search of Anna" and "Mad Dog Morgan". Television credits include regular guest starring roles in "All Saints", "Sea Change", "Backberner", "Water Rats", "Heartland", "GP", "Seven Deadly Sins", "A Country Practice", "True Believers", "Scales Of Justice", "The Sullivans", "Cop Shop", "Glory" and "Bluey". Theatre credits include the starring role in "The Weight", "The Sportshow", "The Laughing Bantam", "La Certis", "Sadie & Neco" all for La Mama Theatre, "Teeth and Smiles" for the Nimrod Theatre and "The Marriage Of Figaro" for Company B.