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Anthony Kelly - Film
By Rych McCain International/Nationally Syndicated Entertainment Columnist
Anthony
Kelley
Debuts In
The Gambler
It is the average actors dream just to get
a bit role in their first movie for the experience, exposure and resume credit.
Landing a lead role for your first acting job is indeed very rare. Especially
if you are paired with a veteran lead superstar actor, the odds are even
greater. Well actor Anthony Kelley beat those odds when he won the role of college
hoops star Lamar Allen who develops a shady type of relationship with his lit
professor Jim Bennett played by Mark Wahlberg. Professor Bennett is an obsessed
gambler who gets in too deep with a loan he obtained from the local loan shark
godfather. The professor solicits Allen to fix a game to help him out.
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| Anthony Kelly as Lamar |
So what is Kelley’s take on getting the
role and how did it happen? He smiles,“It’s a
dream come true. My uncle called me about the open casting they were having in
Watts and they were looking for real basketball players. I have been pursuing
basketball my whole life and I was at a crossroads and was trying to go
overseas and was preparing to do a showcase they do every year in July. He
called me and told me to come down for the open casting. At first I didn’t want
to do it as I am camera shy but I ended up going down there and Sheila
Joffre just worked with me for two months 2/3 times a week and went
over the lines and played basketball while I recited my lines.”
What were the major hurdles he had to get
over? Kelley reflects, “The most difficult thing was trying to portray the
right emotion especially in the classroom scene. That scene alone we had the
first two days I was on set and I can actually relate to Lamar and what he is
going through. The emotion part was the hardest part.”
 |
| Anthony Kelly |
Being a rookie on the set how was the
treatment from the rest of the cast? Kelley laughs, “I didn’t get any pranks.
They were just easy to get into character. It was just so simple for Mark to
improvise and go right back into topic.´ Actors do come and go so has he
formulated a game plan for his career while staying grounded? Kelley says, “Having
Mark and Michael by my side coaching me through all this process and telling me
to just be patient was a great help. My friends keep me grounded as well. I try to stay away from doing anything that
can sabotage the brand. As far as going out I act as I am normal person and try
to be humble and don’t really talk about the movie unless people bring it
up.”
Has Kelley received any scripts since his
current role and if so, what types are being offered? He’s back to laughing, “I
have a movie about a penitentiary in Louisiana. I can’t really talk too much
about it. I have been getting roles that are kinda veered away from basketball
and athletic stuff. They have been real acting and nitty gritty movies and it’s
going to really stretch me to whole another dynamic that I have never done
before as far as acting. It’s going to take me out of comfort zone.”
So is professional basketball behind you
now? Kelley laments, “No, but right now it’s taken a back seat. I am in love
with acting and love portraying another character and playing it back and
seeing I did a really good job.” Does this involve taking more acting classes?
He lights up, “Michael K sent me a list of 10 different acting classes and
acting coaches and I am actually going to go out to New York to work with his
acting coach. I feel like she refined him as an actor and didn’t really change
him up too much but just shed more light to what he normally does.”
The DVD on “The Gambler” is out now on
line and in stores. Will there be any surprises that the on screen movie didn’t
have. Kelly suggests that you might see him balling up with Mark as he dunked
on him a few times. There are interviews also. As far as scenes that were cut
all of his scenes were in there.”
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2015 Rych McCain Media/Syndication TM
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