Hollywood is coming to Indy.
At the world premier of the new feature film “The Duel,” its creators have planned a glamour-soaked party unlike anything central Indiana has seen. There will be big-name stars, bright lights and of course a red carpet.
All of it adds up to a celebration of filmmaking in the Hoosier State — with significant Johnson County flair.
“The Duel” has its world premiere Sunday at Indianapolis’ Hilbert Circle Theatre. The film’s cast, including Dylan Sprouse, Callan McAuliffe and Patrick Warburton, will be on hand to showcase the film for the general public. An VIP afterparty is planned at Newfields after the screening.
The film is loaded with local connections. Not only were all the scenes filmed in Indiana, but a local production company, Pigasus Pictures, made it. Strain, co-owner of Pigasus Pictures and a professor at Franklin College, served as production designer and producer.
A Franklin College student at the time, Katy Thompson, assisted in the creation of it. Certain scenes were filmed on the college’s campus. Even a pig residing on a Franklin farm, Bashi, has a role in the movie.
“He’s a Franklin pig who made it on the cast list,” Strain said.
“The Duel” is a fast-paced blend of comedy and action. According to the official synopsis, ‘The Duel’ follows Woody (McAuliffe), who upon discovering that his best friend, Colin (Sprouse), has been having an affair with his girlfriend, decides that no modern form of revenge could possibly satisfy him. Instead, Woody challenges his closest companion to a classic contest of honor — a gentleman’s duel to the death. When two of their friends join the act, the once inseparable group of men inch closer to the day of destiny and test the bonds of their relationship until the moment of no return.”
Disney Channel fans of a certain age will recognize Sprouse from his time on “The Suite Life of Zack & Cody” and its spin-off, “The Suite Life on Deck,” where he starred alongside his twin brother Cole Sprouse. He’s been featured in a variety of other film projects since then, including “Banana Split,” “After We Collided” and “The Curse of Turandot.”
His counterpart in “The Duel” is McAuliffe, known for roles on “The Walking Dead” as well as appearing in “Homeland” and in “The Great Gatsby.”
Other featured actors include Patrick Warburton, who is recognizable for his voice acting as Joe Swanson in “Family Guy” and Kronk in “The Emperor’s New Groove, as well as his role as Puddy in “Seinfeld,” Hart Denton from “Riverdale” and Rachel Matthews from “Do Revenge” and “Frozen 2.”
“The Duel” was born during the COVID-19 pandemic, when creators Justin Matthews and Luke Spencer Roberts spent six months writing the film during lockdown. They reached out to Sprouse, who Spencer Roberts had worked with on “Banana Split,” for notes on the script. Sprouse instead said he loved the idea and wanted to be in it.
Momentum kept gathering. They reached out to Zach Spicer, founder and CEO of Pigasus Pictures, who was a friend of Matthews. Spicer agreed to produce and finance a majority of the project, with a stipulation that it had to be entirely filmed in Indiana — as all of Pigasus’ pictures are filmed in the state.
“(Spicer) said, ‘The guys are going to drive from Washington to Indiana to meet you. Can you find all of these locations in Indiana in five days?’” Strain said. “So I was sort of scrambling to find locations, because we wanted to film as soon as possible.”
Filming started in the late summer of 2020. For a film set in California and Mexico, they had to get creative with shoot locations. The beach at Michigan City became a stand-in for the Pacific Ocean. The Inferno Room, a tiki bar in Indianapolis, played a role in the film, as did Bluespring Caverns in Bedford and the catacombs underneath City Market.
A key location was at Asherwood, the former estate of Mel and Bren Simon in Carmel which serves as the palatial estate where much of the action occurs.
Franklin College also found its way into the film.
“When we had to do some reshoots, we couldn’t get that Asherwood location back. So we did a reshoot on the campus to kind of mimic that,” Strain said.
With Strain’s connection to the college, it made sense when Thompson, who was a student at the time, took part as production assistant for the art team. He was her advisor in the theater department, and she had worked with him on previous films and other projects.
When he asked if she wanted to help on “The Duel,” she thought it would be fun. Though it was a lot of work, it turned out to be extremely worthwhile.
“It was all very, very new to me. I was a theater major and didn’t know a whole lot about how films were done, and it was so different from theater,” said the 2021 Franklin College graduate. “But it was a lot of fun. There was a lot of problem-solving, thinking quickly on your feet. I did everything from floral arrangements to, one day, raking leaves because it was fall in Indiana and we had to make it look like Mexico in the summer. We were constantly doing new things.”
Though post-production of “The Duel” has taken more than two years, the film has found traction in the entertainment world. The movie was accepted to South by Southwest (SXSW), the Toronto International Film Festival and the San Sebastian International Film Festival. Global distribution has been picked up by Amazon, Netflix, Hulu and Lionsgate.
“The Duel” represents the most high-profile film for Pigasus Pictures yet, Strain said.
“For us, it’s super exciting, because this is our biggest release yet. We’ve had distribution with our other films, but not as widely as this one is,” he said. “We’re excited, but we’re also navigating new territory.”
Because of its connection to Indiana, it made sense to bring the world premier event to Indianapolis. Participants will get to join Sprouse, Warburton and the entire cast and crew for the red carpet event before a screening of the film.
“It’s been stressful and challenging, but we’re excited for it. I think it’s going to be a fun party,” Strain said. “We’re excited to partner with Hilbert Circle Theatre for the premiere but also to partner with Newfields for the afterparty. It’s going to be a great time.”
IF YOU GO
“The Duel” world premiere
What: A red-carpet event and screening of the feature film starring Dylan Sprouse, Callan McAuliffe and Patrick Warburton. Cast and crew will take part in the event. All of the movie was filmed in Indiana, including scenes at Franklin College. Gordon Strain, a professor at the college, is producer and production manager.
When: 7-11 p.m. Sunday
Where: Hilbert Circle Theatre, 45 Monument Circle, Indianapolis
Tickets: $50 general admission, $150 premium seating, $500 VIP package, $150 “The Duel” gift bag.
Information and tickets: pigasuspictures.com/event-details-registration/the-duel-world-premiere
