Written by Dan Mayfield

As the movie industry heats up, it’s common to see familiar Albuquerque faces in the background. But what about art?
Watch the background of the TV shows “Breaking Bad” and “In Plain Sight” for local artists’ work. Weems Art Gallery has started renting art to local movie sets as set dressing.
“They come in and they get a mix of everything,” gallery owner Mary Ann Weems said.
The set dresser, Mary Holyoke, has had to outfit drug dealers’ houses, teachers’ homes and, recently, an entire mall. The film “Observe and Report,” which is filming at the nearly empty Winrock Mall, is using a bunch of art from Weems for a fake mall framing shop.
“I tried to get them to name it Weems,” Weems joked. “The latest one is a real mix because it’s a frame shop gallery in the mall. It was fun because I had a real big picture of my dog Oscar, and she took it.”
Sometimes, the requests are specific.
“We have to do the drug house, and that required expensive-looking art. That has a lot to do with framing. We did the teacher’s house, so we have to have something up, and the teacher is in Albuquerque, so it was more southwestern and traditional,” Weems said.
To the artists, Weems pays a percentage of the rental fee, which can be as much as 10 percent of the cost of the art.
“When I first started noticing art in a TV series was on ‘Frasier.’ OK, this was what was so fun, that was when I was handling Anthony Quinn’s work, and I recognized an Anthony Quinn piece, then they switched it to a (Dale) Chihuly sculpture. They were using real art because Frasier was an art snob,” she said. “Maybe those drug dealers are, too.”
STUDIO DIFFERENT: The new Santa Fe Studios is on its way — but there are still a few minor hurdles for the company to jump before it’s done.
The new studio is a groundbreaking idea, designed to fit in with Santa Fe’s unique attitudes toward buildings and be green at the same time.
Those are often antithetical ideas in filmmaking.
Last week, the Santa Fe County Commission voted to allow the county to sell 65 acres of land to the Hool family of movie maestros.
“There’s a number of additional minor hurdles, nothing too significant,” said Jason Hool, one of the family members working on the studios.
Hool said the big stuff — selling the county on the idea of the studio — is done. And really, how hard could that have been? It looks good, will bring clean jobs, and take over land to the south of town that nobody has wanted.
The little things now, like getting approval for the design and ironing out some other little construction issues, should be handled quickly, and Santa Fe Studios should be open for business by the end of 2009, or early 2010.
And it’s about time.
Albuquerque Studios is swamped. The studio here, in Mesa Del Sol, may be huge but it’s also entirely booked. TV shows, and of course the behemoth project “Terminator IV,” have leased the entire thing.
We do need another studio — and fast — if the state wants to keep up with the film industry that can’t seem to get enough of our landscape and eager film crews.
But studios are big. They’re warehouses on the outside, and all the magic happens on the inside. Usually, not so pretty.
This one should be. It’s designed around the ideas of starchitect Gary Bastien, who drew inspiration from northern New Mexico’s pueblos. Bastien has, for example, designed the studio to run along one of the sun’s meridians, like Chaco Canyon dwellings.
A MARIAH MOMENT:
Superstar singer Mariah Carey quietly slipped in and out of New Mexico in spring 2007. Not long after her record “The Emancipation of Mimi” hit the top of the charts, she filmed “Tennessee” here.
Not to avoid all the “Glitter” bomb jokes, but Carey sparkles in the new film. Folks who saw the movie’s premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York said it was her best acting effort yet. That may not be saying much, but she’s apparently pretty good in it.
The film was shot mostly in Albuquerque and Moriarty.
“Of our 22 days of shooting, three-quarters were in New Mexico,” said Lisa Cortes of Lee Daniels Entertainment.
Though the film was produced by Lee Daniels (“Monster’s Ball,” “The Woodsman”), it’s still considered an indie film because it’s not attached to a major studio.

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by Tech. Sgt. Larry A. Simmons
Air Force Print News

Movie director Michael Bay films an Airman on the set of the movie “Transformers” at Holloman Air Force Base, N.M., on May 31. Several Airmen had the opportunity to fill roles as extras during filming. The movie is scheduled for release in July 2007. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Larry A. Simmons)

7/11/2006 – SAN ANTONIO (AFPN) — Lights, camera, action! Airmen at Holloman Air Force Base, N.M., home to the Air Force’s only operational F-117 wing, got to experience a new kind of rush as Hollywood invaded their base.

The DreamWorks/Paramount Pictures live-action film “Transformers,” set to release in July 2007, will feature several different aircraft including the F-117 Nighthawk from Holloman and the CV-22 Osprey from Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M. More than 300 Airmen participated as extras in the movie and providing logistical support during the filming.

“It’s a thrill to know my face will be seen in a movie. It outweighs the long hours,” said Airman 1st Class Mehtar Sullivan, an emergency management technician with the 49th Civil Engineer Squadron at Holloman.

While participating as extras in the movie, Airmen had to be on leave and available all day for shooting scenes. Some Airmen have speaking roles in the film. The days were long and sometimes lasted until early morning the next day.

“This was a great way to highlight what our mission is, what our people do and what our equipment does at no expense to the taxpayer,” said Capt. Trisha Raynoha of the 49th Fighter Wing Public Affairs Office.

The production crew sent scouts to seven different Air Force bases and several Army installations before deciding on Holloman and the F-117 wing.

F-117s and the CV-22 Osprey are featured prominently in the movie as both static background and taxiing aircraft. Also featured will be the A-10 Thunderbolt II, C-17 Globemaster III, MH-53 Pave Low, HH-53 Super Jolly Green Giant, AC-130 Gunship, C-130 Hercules, MQ-1 Predator unmanned aerial vehicle and Air Force One.

“The CV-22 Osprey is scheduled to make its feature film debut in this movie, along with the F-22 Raptor,” said 1st Lt. Christian Hodge, chief, industry relations, Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs entertainment liaison.

With the movie set in full swing, it gave Airmen a peek into Hollywood life and a moment in the spotlight.

“It has been a wonderful experience seeing how they actually make a movie and all the work that goes into it. It has been fun,” said Airman 1st Class Toby Schultz from Holloman Air Force Base, N.M.

This is the largest movie project since “Black Hawk Down” to receive Department of Defense approval as selection is based on how accurately forces are portrayed. With Michael Bay as the director, known for his special effects-driven movies like “The Rock” and “Pearl Harbor,” the approval was easy.

“We’ve worked with Michael Bay before; we like the way he operates. He understands how the military operates,” said Army Lt. Col. Paul Sinor, lead public affairs representative for DOD.

Airmen filling the roles of movie extras run on the set of the movie “Transformers” during filming at Holloman Air Force Base, N.M., on May 30. The movie is scheduled for release in July 2007. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Larry A. Simmons)

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You, Too, Can Take a New Mexico Road Trip
By Elizabeth Mitchell, About.com

Wild Hogs – Wild Over Beautiful New Mexico                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                                 Tim Allen of Wild Hogs in New Mexico
                                                                                                                                                      Copyright: Touchstone Pictures

                                                                                                                                                                

In the new Disney Touchstone Pictures comedy Wild Hogs, starring John Travolta, Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence, and William H. Macy, four middle-aged wannabe bikers take a road trip from Ohio to the West Coast spending time in New Mexico. The movie was almost entirely filmed in New Mexico and although the state’s diverse landscape filled in for other parts of the country, much of the movie is set in the state.

Head for Madrid, New Mexico

The majority of the film is shot in the colorful former mining town of Madrid, New Mexico. After the town’s mine closed in the 1800s, it became somewhat of a ghost town until the 1970s when artists began to settle in the charming village. Today, it is a thriving artists’ colony complete with shops, galleries, restaurants, and bed and breakfasts. Madrid is located on the Turquoise Trail National Scenic Byway, approximately 50 miles northeast of Albuquerque amongst the Sandia Mountains. The open roads, breathtaking vistas, magnificent mountain views, and parking and picnic spots along the way have made this a popular scenic route for tourists, motorcyclists and outdoor enthusiasts alike.

Albuquerque, Hot Air Balloon Capital of the World

Madrid is one of many reasons to visit the Albuquerque area. The “Hot Air Balloon Capital of the World” offers something for everyone. For outdoor enthusiasts, the high desert climate, more than 310 days of sunshine annually, and spectacular scenery make Albuquerque a dream come true. Within an hour’s drive of the city are the Sandia, Jemez and Manzano Mountains as well as the Turquoise Trail. Hikers, skiers, mountain bikers and motorcyclists delight in the outdoor opportunities afforded by the varied terrain. Elevations ranging from 5,000 feet to over 12,000 feet offer majestic mountain vistas, bright blue skies, towering ponderosa pines and crystal-clear streams. The vivid colors, wildlife, climate and scenery of the high desert region offer a sharp contrast to the common perceptions of the Southwestern landscape.

Travel Like the Wild Hogs

To experience the natural splendor and the open roads of the West as seen in Wild Hogs, Albuquerque serves as an excellent starting point. Visitors will find a variety of options for lodging, dining, shopping and attractions in the metropolitan area. Outdoor outfitters providing equipment, supplies and tours will maximize enjoyment of the scenic wilderness, which is easily accessible from the city. Learn more about visiting Albuquerque with our Albuquerque Travel Guide.

Information Courtesy: Albuquerque Convention and Visitors Bureau

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A theatrical property, commonly referred to as a “prop,” is any object held or used on stage by an actor for use in furthering the plot or story line of a theatrical production. Smaller props are referred to as “hand props”. Larger props may also be set decoration, such as a chair or table. The difference between a set decoration and a prop is use. If the item is not touched by a performer for any reason it is simply a set decoration. If it is touched by the actor in accordance to script requirements or as deemed by the director, it is a prop.
Types of Props: 1. Realistic props – realistic. 2. Stylised props – made for the set 3. Mimed Props – Mimed.
 

History

 Small acting troupes formed during the renaissance, travelled throughout Europe. These “companies,” functioning as cooperatives, pooled resources and divided any income. Many performers provided their own costumes, but special items: stage weapons, furniture or other hand-held devices were considered “company property,” thus the term “property,” which eventually was shortened to “prop.” [1][2] The first known props were stylized hand held masks, called Onkoi, used by performers in “Greek Theatre” and have become symbols of theatre today, known as the “comedy and tragedy masks”.
On stage, backstage

The term theatrical property, better known as a prop, originated as an object used in a stage play and similar entertainments to further the action. Technically, a prop is any object that gives the scenery, actors, or performance space specific period, place, or character. The term comes from live-performance practice, especially theatrical methods, but its modern use extends beyond the traditional plays and musical, circus, novelty, comedy, and even public-speaking performances, to film, television, and electronic media. All props in a production originate from off stage unless they have been preset on the stage before the production begins. Props are stored on a prop table backstage near the actor’s entrance during production then generally locked in a storage area between performances.

Modern usage
The term has readily transferred to television and motion picture production, where they are commonly referred to by the phrase “movie props.” In recent years, the increasing popularity of movie memorabilia (a broader term that also includes costumes) has added new meaning to the term “prop,” broadening its existence to include a valuable after-life as a prized collector’s item. Typically not available until after a film’s premiere, movie props appearing on-screen are christened “screen-used”, and can fetch thousands of dollars in online auctions and charity benefits. [3][4]
Props are generally distinct from the costumes worn by the actors, the scenery (sets) or other large objects that can be considered part of the stage. Occasionally, if a period-piece item of clothing is handled or otherwise appears on screen, but is never worn by an actor, then it would the responsibility of the prop master, and thus considered a prop. For example, belts, stockings, hats, and other normally wearable items may be considered as props if they are merely picked up by an actor or used for alternate purposes. Similarly, a scene in a shoe store may require numerous prop shoes to fill the sets shelves, and therefore will be handled by the prop master or set decorator.
Many props are ordinary objects. However, a prop must read well from the house or on-screen, meaning it must look real to the audience. Many real objects are poorly adapted to the task of looking like themselves to an audience, due to their size, durability, or color under bright lights, so some props are specially designed to look more like the actual item than the real object would look. In some cases, a prop is designed to behave differently than the real object would, often for the sake of safety.
Examples of special props are:
• A prop sack representing a burlap bag, that might have one side starched or sized to stiffly duplicate a particular shape which a real (and limp) burlap bag would be unlikely to collapse into by chance.
• A prop weapon (such as a stage gun or a stage sword) that reads well but lacks the intentional harmfulness of the corresponding real weapon. In the theater, prop weapons are almost always either non-operable replicas, or have safety features to ensure they are not dangerous. Guns fire caps or noisy blanks, swords are dulled, and knives are often made of plastic or rubber. In film production, fully functional weapons are occasionally used, but typically only with special smoke blanks instead of real bullets. The safety and proper handling of real weapons used as movie props is the premiere responsibility of the prop master, who is often monitored by off-duty police, fireman, and/or ATF agents.[citation needed]
• Breakaway objects, such as balsa-wood furniture, or candy-glass (mock-glassware made of crystallized sugar) whose breakage and debris look real but rarely cause injury due to their light weight and weak structure. Even for such seemingly safe props, very often a stunt double will replace the main actor for shots involving use of breakaway props.

Property departmental crossovers

Props will sometimes have crossover requirements, needing to be addressed by the different departments.
• If an item is worn it is a costume. If it is merely held it is a prop. Hats, watches, glasses, purses, and even jewelry can be considered a prop under the right circumstances. These items may still need approval from the costume designer.
• Specialty props such as battery powered flickering candles, lanterns or flashlights may be purchased or pulled by the props designer and be supervised by the lighting designer and head electrician.
• Working and nonworking microphones, hand held and floor standing, may fall under the prop department as well as sound. Any prop that makes an audible noise loud enough to be picked up by mics should also be coordinated with the sound designer as well as any item that obstructs/mutes or amplifies sound.
• Musical instruments played on stage by a performer may also need to be coordinated with the musical director and/or orchestra leader.
The choice of evoking the legal concept of “property” in naming props probably reflects the issues of prop management. The performer using a prop has to eventually let go of it, either because the character being played does so, or in order to take a bow or effect a change of costume or makeup. Even if the value of the item is negligible, the effort of realizing it is gone and replacing it is probably not, and it is efficient to take steps to ensure it is at hand for the next performance. Thus a prop’s availability to the performer must be guarded as diligently as an individual’s valued private property. Two institutions reflect this need:
• The prop manager, prop master, or prop-person, whose sole or overriding responsibility is being sure performers get their props. (The manager of prop weapons and in some cases real weapons serving as props, is often a separate person, and is, in any case, technically the armorer.)
• The prop table, where nothing but props may be left, and nothing removed except by the prop manager or the performer to whom the prop is assigned.
Design, construct and acquire
Under normal circumstances the theatrical prop used must be built, bought, borrowed or pulled from existing stock. This generally falls under the responsibility of the property designer, coordinator or director. Usually the head of the theatre property department, this position requires artistic as well as organizational skills. Working in coordination with the set designer, costume designer, lighting and sometimes, sound designer, this overlapping position has only in recent years become of greater importance. Props have become more and more specialized due in large part to realism as well as the rise of theatre in the round, where few sets are used and the simple prop becomes as important a design element as costumes and lighting.
Besides the obvious artistic creations made in the prop workshop, much of the work done by the property designer is research, phone searches, and general footwork in finding needed items.
Of all the positions within theatre, the property designer receives the least accolades. There are no awards for the props position besides the satisfaction of the item working well for the performance.
References

1. ^ Eric Partridge Origins: A Short Etymological Dictionary of Modern English: Second Edition. Random House 1959
2. ^ Kenneth Macgowan and William Melnitz The Living Stage. Prentice-Hall 1955.
3. ^ Ian Mohr Daily Variety. Reed Business Information February 27, 2006 “Movie props on the block: Mouse to auction Miramax leftovers”
4. ^ David James People Magazine Time, Inc. February 24, 2007 “Bid on Dreamgirls Costumes for Charity”
Retrieved from “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theatrical_property”

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By Wolf Schneider
Sept 18, 2007

When Paul Haggis began searching for locations to shoot his intense Army drama “In the Valley of Elah,” he knew he wanted a place in the South with a 1960s-style motel adjacent to a diner and an Army base nearby — and, of course, in a state with generous tax incentives. Although he had booked scouting trips to New Mexico, Louisiana and South Carolina, he landed first in Albuquerque and quickly discovered he’d found the perfect spot to begin production.

“Within an hour and a half, I’d locked in four locations! Not found them — I mean, locked them,” Haggis says. “I said, ‘It’s great. It’s perfect. Move on!’ So that was just remarkable. I really found a terrific variety of architecture where I thought I’d just find unending adobe.”

The Oscar-winning writer-director-producer isn’t the only filmmaker who’s been lured to the Land of Enchantment recently. Since Gov. Bill Richardson, now a presidential candidate, pushed through an aggressive package of tax rebates and no-interest loans in 2002, New Mexico has become one of the top five filmmaking destinations in the U.S. More than 80 feature film and television projects have been made in the state since then, and annual direct expenditures from film and television production have skyrocketed from $3 million in 2002 to $159 million in 2007. This year alone, the state has attracted more than 30 feature films and television projects.

And it looks as though Hollywood is here to stay. Infrastructure is now solidifying in this artists’ mecca of high chaparral and low population density, striated by the southernmost Rocky Mountains. The crew base has deepened to almost 1,500 — or four to five crews — with homegrown training programs at schools like the University of New Mexico cranking out a new generation. Sustainability is the strategy now, with three seminal events coalescing in the last year.

First, Albuquerque Studios, a $74 million 28-acre site, opened its first six soundstages in April and is already fully booked up.

Second, Sony Pictures Imageworks broke ground on a 100,000-square-foot satellite facility at Albuquerque Studios. It’ll open in June 2008 with 100 jobs in animation, visual effects and digital media, eventually growing to 300.

Third, the “sunset” clause on the 25% tax rebate was removed, so that rebate is now permanently in place. What’s more, the loan fund has been increased so it now holds about $280 million that can be outstanding at anytime — and the state is about to receive its first profits on the loan program from Lionsgate, which advanced $500,000 against the profits of 2006’s “Employee of the Month” and ABC Family’s “Wildfire,” according to state investment council topper Greg Kulka.

Entertainment attorney Peter Dekom helped structure the up-to-$15 million loans that protect the state’s principal since the qualifications include a solid guarantor, distribution in place and the hiring of New Mexico residents for 60% of the below-the-line crew payroll. Mind you, Dekom doesn’t actually read any of the 50 to 100 scripts a year he puts into serious evaluation; his forte is assessing deal elements — which is why the political comedy “Swing Vote” obtained a loan with just foreign distribution in place, plus a personal guarantee from star Kevin Costner, who’s also producing it with Jim Wilson. In midproduction now, the picture just got a domestic deal with Disney.

“Kevin’s an amazing guy,” comments Dekom. “Kevin is in it so deeply. It’s his money that guaranteed the letter of credit that guarantees us. And I think he’s going to make a lot of money on it.”

In return, Costner says, “I have several films that feel like they could work here. I feel like there is a great crew base here.”

“Swing Vote” writer-director Joshua Michael Stern explains of his film: “It’s about the presidential election coming down to one vote, and it had to come from a swing state — a state that was sort of independent, that was a free-spirited, free-thinking kind of place. So I set the script in New Mexico.” Stern imagined his setting to be “a little desert town like in (1971’s) ‘The Last Picture Show.’”

Producer Wilson found that sleepy town in Belen — complete with an area they could use as a backlot. Wilson found everything else in the script here, too. “It was like, I need some stately buildings for the capitol — that’s in Santa Fe,” he recounts. “I need large warehouses. I need chicken factories. I need something that looks like Vermont for Dennis Hopper’s character’s palatial house — we found a big A-frame home in the Sandia Mountains. I need Santa Barbara for where Kelsey Grammer, (who plays) the incumbent president, can live — that’s in Corrales.”

Wilson knew New Mexico, having teamed with Costner on 1994’s “Wyatt Earp.” “The industry has come a long way here in the last 10 years. There’s an infrastructure now that’s capable of handling numerous movies,” he observes.

Albuquerque, with a population of half a million, is New Mexico’s biggest production center — though Santa Fe and other points north attract the atmospheric Westerns, like New Line Cinema’s “Appaloosa,” directed by and starring Ed Harris. “That area seemed right for what we were looking for. It was the dramatic quality of the landscape, I guess you’d say — the water, the cliffs, the sky, the clouds,” says Harris, who also considered — then nixed — Canada, Texas and Arizona, because “the great rebate situation is difficult to pass up.”

The master strategist behind those 25% tax rebates (which are true tax rebates on New Mexico spends, not tax credits as so many other states offer), and indeed the whole production boom, is Eric Witt, Gov. Richardson’s director of media arts and entertainment development. Since Richardson took office in 2003, film production has brought the state $409 million in direct expenditures. “The key now is our reputation and the relationships we develop, and because of that, companies like Sony Imageworks are relocating on a permanent basis here as opposed to sending individual productions,” evaluates the savvy Witt, who was vp finance at Dino De Laurentiis Communications before donning his cowboy boots.

“Yes, we are a case study in a general economic development sense,” allows Witt. “But the film business doesn’t always make sense for every state.” Hosting film and television productions requires more than just varied locations and, in the case of New Mexico, 300 days a year of sunshine, Witt elaborates: “You have to design your program in way that makes economic sense for your state, and that largely depends on your tax structure and your job base. Do you have crew? The reason we are able to give a 25% tax rebate and still make money — we are one of, if not the only state that makes money on its rebate program — is because of our gross receipts tax and personal income tax and corporate income tax.”

“States that don’t have that tax structure — like Nevada or Texas — can’t just take New Mexico’s model and co-op it lock, stock and barrel,” he continues.

With 15 projects either here or coming, New Mexico is now the busiest ever. Two futuristic films both in the $50 million range are headquartering at Albuquerque Studios: Lakeshore Entertainment’s “Game,” in which a fictional prison institutes a process whereby convicts can commute their sentences by participating in a deadly game, and Lionsgate’s “The Spirit.” Other projects include Paramount Pictures’ latest installment of the “Indiana Jones” franchise, USA Network’s drama series “In Plain Sight” and AMC’s crime series “Breaking Bad.” “The Burrowers,” a sci-fi thriller about underground creatures who prey on the inhabitants of a 19th century Western town, just wrapped, as did the Cuba Gooding Jr. action thriller “Linewatch,” which was promptly picked up by Sony Pictures Entertainment, and there’s talk about a Taylor Hackford movie coming.

State film commissioner Lisa Strout observes, “To have the infrastructure with a major company like Sony here on the ground has already spurred other people to want to be here too in a sort of media cluster.”

“We’re scouting a lot these days for Iraq and Afghanistan and Pakistan on the western face of the Sandia Mountains and the Florida Mountains near Deming,” Strout adds.

Anticipating more activity, producer Lance Hool is in advanced talks to open a soundstage complex in Santa Fe County called Santa Fe Studios, and Lionsgate has a soundstage in the planning for north of Albuquerque. Says Lionsgate executive vp Mark Manuel, “We are looking at numerous options for our film studio. If anything, we have seen the volume of production in New Mexico pick up dramatically over the past few months.”

It’s enough to make Dekom punningly promise, “You’ll never get a chile reception in Tamalewood!” And to drive it home with “We can keep our crews busy all the time — we are a hot tamale.”

IN PRODUCTION: Projects currently shooting in New Mexico

“Breaking Bad” (AMC) “Malcolm in the Middle’s” Bryan Cranston stars as a high school teacher who suffers a midlife crisis and becomes a criminal.

“Five Dollars a Day” (ThinkFilm) Christopher Walken toplines as a con man on a road trip with his conservative son, played by Alessandro Nivola.

“In Plain Sight” (USA Network) Mary McCormack stars as a federal marshal who works with people in the witness protection program.

“To Live and Die” (MGM) Joe Pantoliano plays an assassin on the run in Albuquerque.

“Swing Vote” (Disney) Political comedy stars Kevin Costner.

“The War Boys” Drama based on the acclaimed play by Naomi Wallace about vigilantes who police the Mexican border.

COMING UP

“Appaloosa” (New Line Cinema) Ed Harris, who co-adapted the Western drama, will produce and direct, as well as co-star with Viggo Mortensen and Renee Zellweger.

“The Burning Plain” Charlize Theron stars in this drama, which marks the directorial debut of Guillermo Arriaga, screenwriter of 2006’s “Babel.”

“Game” This high-concept thriller stars Gerald Butler.

“Hamlet II” A high school teacher attempts to write a sequel to Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” in this comedy starring Catherine Keener and Steve Coogan.

“The Spirit” (Lionsgate) Graphic novelist Frank Miller’s first solo directorial effort stars Gabriel Macht as a cop who returns from the dead to fight crime. Also stars Samuel L. Jackson, Scarlett Johansson and Eva Mendes.

Source: Hollywood Reporter

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