Richard’s “Canada AM” interview with “Delivery Man” co-star Cobie Smulders.
“It’s a blown up version of something that happens in real life,” she says. “You had a relationship when you were younger and all of a sudden a woman contacts the father and, ‘Oh, by the way, you have a seven year old.’ Obviously there is room for comedy there but everyone wants him to step up and be the hero and watch him do that journey.”
“We were so lucky to have [original director] Ken Scott. He did it so well the first time that he was able to do it a second time and have those same sentiments in it and spoken in English.”
At one point in “Delivery Man,” a remake of the much-loved French film “Starbuck,” David Wozniak’s (Vince Vaughn) father (Andrzej Blumenfeld) says, “If you can live with his countless faults you’ll have some marvelous times.”
David is a sweet tempered, kind oaf who never seems to make the right decision. That’s a fault that has landed him $80,000 in debt, desperate for cash and, as if that wasn’t enough, he’s also the biological father of over 500 children. To say he brings some baggage with his good nature is an understatement along the lines of calling Miley Cyrus show-offy.
Vaughn subs in for French star Patrick Huard in this almost shot-for-shot remake of the original film. He’s a man-child who, “everyday finds new ways to push the limits of incompetence,” but learns commitment and responsibility after discovering that his sperm bank donations unwittingly made him the father of 533 children, 142 of whom have filed a class action lawsuit to learn their biological father’s real identity.
“Delivery Man” features a much more low key Vaughn than we’ve seen lately, and that’s a good thing. His slick motor mouth act got tired around the same time the housing bubble burst but with very few exceptions—Into the Wild being one of them—he’s been coasting through movies like “Fred Claus,” “Couple’s Retreat” and (worst of all) “The Watch.”
But he’s not a one trick pony and “Delivery Man” reminds us that there is more to him than verbal dexterity and sardonic wit.
He hands in a charming performance with all the rough edges buffed away in a movie that is unabashedly sweet—some might say corny—but there is no cynicism here and that is the movie’s main strength.
In a recent tweet-a-thon to promote Delivery Man Cobie Smulders teased that people should go see the film because Chris Pratt gets naked.
“He doesn’t get naked,” she says a week later, admitting to the fib.
“That was very overwhelming. I had never done that before. There were 9000 tweets and I didn’t know what to do. It was crazy. I was trying to write and my phone was (shaking).”
The Canadian-born How I Met Your Mother actress stars opposite Vince Vaughn in a remake of Starbuck, a popular French-Canadian film about a man who finds personal redemption when he learns he is the father of 533 children.
“I went into watching Starbuck and then reading this script, like, ‘533 kids… from a sperm donor! What’s this going to be?’
“It’s still super funny, but I found myself affected by the way he connected with the children. The way they connected as human beings. Going out and doing a good deed and having it affect somebody in a positive way. I’ve always believed when you do good, you get good in return. That’s when I feel my best and there are many aspects of that in this film.”
The sweet, uplifting message of Delivery Man struck a chord with Smulders who says she “related to it on a parental level. I’m a mom myself and I think it touched upon so many themes of family and of being a parent.”
The story has also resonated with audiences.
The original film was 2011’s most successful homegrown film in Quebec. Smulders thinks the appeal of this very specific story has to do with its universality.
“It’s a blown up version of something that happens in real life,” she says. “You had a relationship when you were younger and all of a sudden a woman contacts the father and, ‘Oh, by the way, you have a seven year old.’ Obviously there is room for comedy there but everyone wants him to step up and be the hero and watch him do that journey.”
“We were so lucky to have [original director] Ken Scott. He did it so well the first time that he was able to do it a second time and have those same sentiments in it and spoken in English.”
Now there’s even talk of a Bollywood remake.
“We should have done a Bollywood song and dance at the end of our movie,” Smulders laughs.
Richard’s “Canada AM” interview with “Delivery Man” co-star Cobie Smulders.
