Everyone loves a good underdog story. When it comes to movies, the underdog stories tend to be about sports, either a ragtag team taking down the favored giant or a person whom everyone else told was no good finally proving themselves. But there’s another arena that serves the underdog incredibly well: music. And while we’re all familiar with stories about singers rising from obscurity to become famous, none of us have seen one quite like Wheeler.
Starring and co-written by Stephen Dorff, Wheeler is about a good ‘ole boy musician from a tiny town in Texas who sets his sights on singing with the country music greats in Nashville. The twist, however, is that the movie is a mix of documentary and fiction. Thanks to carefully considered makeup prosthetics, Dorff is nearly unrecognizable as Wheeler, and he uses that anonymity to truly live in the character. His performances in the movie are with real crowds, not rooms full of extras. The audiences have no idea this is a big name Hollywood actor, they think they’re just watching a rising musician sing his heart out.
It’s a very interesting way to frame the movie – and to show off Dorff’s genuine musical talent – and you can see how it all plays out today, as Wheeler is now out in select theaters and on VOD. You can check out a clip from it below.