I’ve been trying to get this guy to Providence since the first episode of “Vikings” aired back in 2013, and now it looks like all that wishing and hoping is finally paying off: By the end of the month, actor Clive Standen will be taking part in “Vault,” the movie version* of the famous 1975 bonded vault heist. Which of those gooned-up mobsters he could possibly be playing is hard to imagine. Best guess? Gerald Tillinghast, but even that would take hours of makeup and layers of prosthetics. Maybe he’s one of the cops. (Unclear if the budget includes CGI.)
The creator of the “Vikings” series, Michael Hirst, also put together four fascinating documentary episodes called “The Real Vikings,” in which he would take one of the actors to a location pertinent to that actor and learn more about Viking history. He and Standen went to the Rouen Cathedral where the real Rollo is buried. Standen proved to be charming and smart and was genuinely moved. Clive is just the whole package.
Fun fact: Director Tom DeNucci is sharing screenwriting credits with Providence rapper and socially conscious hip-hop artist B. Dolan! He is signed to Strange Famous Records and tours internationally . . . hope he knows how to write dialogue. And a certain British actor may be in need of a dialect coach. Go to Verdi Productions for the official “Vault” trailer.
*Creators of the popular Crimetown podcast — as well as the HBO series “The Jinx” — are developing a series adaptation for FX.