By Mallory Mattingly
Everyone loves a comeback movie filled with faith, comedy and redemption, and actor Daniel Roebuck’s new project, THE HAIL MARY, is just that.
“THE HAIL MARY is a comedy about Sister Kathy, a Nun with a sense of humor and purpose, who finds an angry loner in need of redemption and leads him to his atonement by conning him into creating a football team for her All-Boys Catholic School,” a synopsis of the film reads.
Roebuck plays Jake Bower, who needs a Hail Mary.
“He’s a conglomeration of many people I’ve met in my life who just get disassociated with God,” the actor told Movieguide®. “And for those of us lucky enough to have a relationship, we look — even a lot lately — you think, ‘Ah, if that guy just talked to God every morning, his point of view might be less angry, less sad, less whatever.’ And it’s a heartbreaker to me.”
“Generally, like any alcoholic or anybody who’s addicted to something, they’ve got to find their own path,” he continued. “I set out in this movie to think [ask] what if your conscience was the last place you would look for it? In this guy’s life, he even says in the movie, ‘I don’t believe in God.’ And Sister Kathy says, ‘Well, that’s fine, but He believes in you, so that’s working out okay.'”
Roebuck not only starred in THE HAIL MARY, but he also wrote, produced and directed the movie, pulling from his own experiences growing up.
“I ended up in this school where the Sisters of St. Joseph of Philadelphia — I don’t know if they’re any different than any other group of religious sisters — but you know what? They got me. I think that’s why I wrote the movie, because they never impeded my attempts to be funny,” Roebuck said of his reason for making the film. “First grade, I came in and said to Sister Kathleen, my teacher, ‘I wrote a play.’ She said, ‘Uh-huh. You wrote a play.’ I remember holding these papers, saying I wrote a play. Now, Kathleen knew something I didn’t know — I didn’t know how to read or write. She knew that. So how in God’s name did I write a play?”
“Well, my idea of writing a play was drawing pictures and saying, ‘This is a play.’ And she said, ‘Let’s do your play,'” he recalled. “That’s such a huge moment. I know a lot of us have a great teacher story, but that is so indicative of who those religious sisters were. They were able to see whatever spark of God was in me.”
Part of Movieguide®’s review for the film reads:
THE HAIL MARY is a moving and unexpected Catholic comedy with good performances, strong writing and directing, and a powerful message about forgiveness. The movie has a strong Christian, moral worldview with many positive references to God, Jesus and prayer. A character refers to another as an answer to prayers. Several characters promote and practice helping others who suffer from loneliness, prayer, gratitude, compassion, forgiveness, and honesty. THE HAIL MARY has brief foul language, some verbal insults, brief violence, a few suggestive references, and some drunkenness. So, MOVIEGUIDE® suggests light caution for younger children.
THE HAIL MARY is set to release soon.
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