The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (2013) on Netflix
Burt Wonderstone and Anton Marvelton have headlined a Las Vegas magic act for years, but Burt's ego wears on his partner. Street magician Steve Gray draws crowds with endurance stunts.
- Netflix3.0/5
- IMDb5.9/1078,710 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes38%
Trailer
Plot summary
As boys, Albert Weinselstein and Anthony Mertz were bullied and friendless until a magic kit from the veteran performer Rance Holloway brought them together. As adults they headline at Bally's in Las Vegas as Burt Wonderstone and Anton Marvelton, in a theater named for them. Ten years of the same tricks have left Burt convinced he alone carries the show, and he treats each female assistant as interchangeable, calling them all Nicole. The newest is Jane, a production assistant, who has admired Burt since she saw him perform and who wants to be a magician herself. Meanwhile a street performer, Steve Gray, wins an online following with stunts of endurance, and the crowds at Bally's thin, worrying the owner, Doug Munny.
Cast
- Luke Vanekas Young Anton
- Richard Wolffeas Richard Wolffe
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (2013)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- The villain was originally written as low-key and bored, speaking so quietly that people would lean in to hear him, but after Carrey joined he wanted to take the character in a "Jesus-y" direction. Adam Pally had been considered for the role.
- Wilde, Michelle Monaghan, Judy Greer, Sarah Silverman and Jessica Biel were all in contention for the female lead. The list was reduced to Silverman, Wilde and Greer, with Wilde as the front-runner, and the filmmakers were waiting for Biel's audition before their final decision.
SPOILER
Holloway was originally scripted to die, but the studio decided that audiences would have too much of a connection to the character, so he remained alive.SPOILER
David Copperfield served as a technical advisor and developed a live stage illusion for the climax, featuring a body switch between Carell's and Buscemi's characters. Scardino insisted the illusion should not depend on camera tricks, and Copperfield provided instructions on how the trick worked and was present on set during its filming.- The film was shot on film stock instead of digital because the difference in cost between the two was decided to be negligible, and the day shooting and the black and red of the magicians' outfits were thought to be captured better on the stock.
- The script went through many changes during its years of development, with Daley and Goldstein alone writing approximately fifteen drafts over a three-and-a-half-year period. There were four different final acts, including one where Holloway is revealed as a betrayer.
