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Watch James Franco and Christian Slater in the Trailer for True Porn Industry Thriller 'Ki…
Garrett Clayton (Disney Channel’s Teen Beach Movie) looks primed for a big-time breakout with King Cobra, a crime film set in the world of gay porn. Clayton plays a hot new star who is torn between two producers, one played by Christian Slater, the other played by James Franco. The plot is based on a true story that left one of these characters murdered.
Franco is also a producer of the movie, which made its debut earlier this year at the Tribeca Film Festival. And he’s again collaborating with filmmaker Justin Kelly, who is directing from his own script. Previously they worked together on Kelly’s indie drama I Am Michael and the Hollywood biopic Milk — both also true LGBT stories.
Watch the first trailer for King Cobra here and check out a breakdown of what’s real in the film down below.
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What’s the true story?
In 2007, gay porn film director and producer Bryan Kocis was murdered in his home by two escorts, who stabbed him 28 times and slit his throat before burning down the house. The title King Cobra comes from the name of Kocis’s studio. He discovered Sean Lockhart, aka Brent Corrigan (who is also in Milk), in 2004 and got rich off his stardom.
Is the movie based on a book?
Yes, 2012’s Cobra Killer: Gay Porn Murder and the Manhunt to Bring the Killers to Justice by Andrew E. Stoner and Peter A. Conway.
Who is playing Kocis in the movie?
Nobody by name, but Slater’s character is obviously based on Kocis. In the movie he discovers Lockhart, whose real name is used and who is portrayed by Clayton. As in the true story, the movie depicts the scandal of how Kocis first employed Lockhart when he was still underage, allegedly unknowingly.
What is Franco’s role?
Franco and Keegan Allen (Pretty Little Liars) play characters named Joe and Harlow, based on Kocis’s killers, Joseph Kerekes and Harlow Cuadra. They had planned on stealing Lockhart away from Kocis for a big-budget gay porn film but there was a issue with the use of the Brent Corrigan name.
Was Lockhart/Corrigan involved in the murder?
Based on the trailer, it looks like the movie is implying Lockhart at least knew of the plan to kill Kocis, or at least that he was aware Kerekes and Cuadra would “take care” of him, but officially Lockhart was never linked to the crime as an accomplice. He did testify against Kerekes and Cuadra during their trial regarding their motive.
Are there any women in this movie?
Alicia Silverstone and Molly Ringwald round out the cast, the former as Lockhart’s mother and the latter playing Kocis’s neighbor.
Does Lockhart/Corrigan make a cameo in the movie?
No, and he wound up refusing to participate as a consultant, as requested. He also declined a small role. He is instead working on a book of his own to offer his side of the story.
When can we see the movie?
King Cobra hits theaters and VOD on October 21
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