Sadie Stanley and Jacob Ward star alongside actor Ray Romano for his directorial debut on Somewhere in Queens. The cast members claim Romano and Laurie Metcalf were more than a job and inspiration to work with.
In the film, Leo Russo (Ray Romano) lives a simple life in Queens, New York with his wife Angela (Laurie Metcalf), their shy but talented son “Sticks” (Jacob Ward), and Leo’s close-knit network of Italian-American relatives and neighborhood friends.
Happy enough working at the family construction business alongside his father (Tony Lo Bianco) and younger brother (Sebastian Maniscalco), Leo lives each week for Sticks’ high-school basketball games. The family never miss a chance to cheer on his only child as he rules the court as a star athlete. When the high school senior gets a surprising and life-changing opportunity to play basketball in college, Leo jumps at the chance. Romano’s character aims to provide a plan for his future away from the family construction business.
But when sudden heartbreak threatens to derail Sticks, Leo goes to unexpected lengths to keep his son on his new path.
Roman joined forces with long-time colleague and co-writer Mark Stegemann, who worked on Men of a Certain Age and more with the star. Romano trusted the vision but neither had any interest in writing a conventional comedy.
Jacob Ward, starring in shorts like “His Favorite Person”, “Your Girlfriend”, “Got Off on the Wrong Foot”, and “Forever & Always” calls this an experience he will never forget.
In his Instagram post, Ward stated “Somewhere in Queens means the world to me because there were so many firsts, but because I’ve come to know so many truly incredible people throughout the process.”
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Ward and Stanley stated working with actors like Romano and Metcalf truly was a gracious experience. Both stars said the Everybody Loves Raymond star gave great advice when they struggled at times with the script to even giving direction on scenes.
Romano claims all that Jacob needed was some solid direction and a dopey haircut to unlock his inner Sticks. With patience, a dialect coach, and a makeover, Ward quickly found his groove.
Stanley, starring in movies like The Sleepover, Kim Possible and more, was one of nearly 100 actresses considered for the role of Dani. Stanley became a leading candidate from the moment casting laid eyes on her and grabbed the character by the throat claiming ownership.
Somewhere in Queens is an homage to family, – the tensions, comfort and the responsibilities that we all know well. Berger claims the film “beautifully blends comedic moments with very relatable and a times painful human truths” where “characters struggle throuhg the mess of family and life in ways that we recognize.
Somewhere in Queens is now in theaters.
