TWO-TIME Grammy Award winner Tia Carrere, along with Golden Globe nominee Lou Diamond Phillips, have joined the cast of Amblin Partners family comedy “Easter Sunday.”
“Easter Sunday” will be based on the stand-up comedy and life experiences of comedy star Jo Koy, who is part Filipino, and is set around a family gathering to celebrate Easter Sunday.
According to Amblin Partners, Carrere will play Tita Theresa, an aunt of Koy’s on-screen character, while Philipps will play a fictionalized version of himself in the film.
Also joining the “Easter Sunday” cast are Eva Noblezada, Brandon Wardell, Lydia Gaston, Rodney To, Melody Butiu, Joey Guila and Elena Juatco.
Jay Chandrasekhar will direct the film based on a script penned by Ken Cheng.
Rideback’s Dan Lin and Jonathan Eirich will produce, while Jo Koy, Cheng, Joe Meloche, Jessica Gao, Jimmy O. Yang, Rideback’s Nick Reynolds and Seth William Meier will executive produce.
Amblin Partners quoted Koy as saying: “Starting production on Easter Sunday is the culmination of a lifetime of dreaming and decades of hard work. It’s especially meaningful that we’ve been able to assemble such an incredible group of diverse and talented filmmakers and comedians to bring this slice of Filipino culture to the world.”
Carrere is a two-time Grammy winner famously known for her roles in “Wayne’s World,” “True Lies,” “Rising Sun,” “Relic Hunter,” and “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” She also lent her voice for Disney’s “Lilo & Stitch.”
She is repped by Innovative Artists and the Arlook Group.
Phillips is noted as a “trailblazer in the Asian, Latinx, and Indigenous communities for decades” by Amblin Partners. He received a Golden Globe nomination for his role in “Stand and Deliver,” and a Tony Award nomination for his portrayal of King Mongkut in the 1996 revival of “The King and I.” He is currently starring in the FOX series “Prodigal Son,” and recently became a published author with the release of his science-fiction fantasy novel “The Tinderbox: Soldier of Indira.”
He is repped by Global Artists Agency and Thruline Entertainment.