Brad Furman discusses his new drug thriller The Infiltrator, star Bryan Cranston and more… Den of Geek: How did you come upon Bob Mazurs book?
Was it given to you by your agent?
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Brad Furman: No.
my dear friend from college, Don Sikorski, brought it to me.
He said, Ive got a background in investigative journalism, a background in documentary filmmaking.
He brought me the book and said, I think this would be a wonderful movie.
What cried out movie to you after you read it?
There was a scene similar to the movie where everybody is around a table and they are praying.
They are holding hands and thanking Bob for being so wonderful.
And he broke down in tears.
And that hooked me right away.
Thats when I knew, I was like, This is a movie.
I gotta make this.
And thats surely not all of LA and the people that encompass it.
I mean I never purposely tried to be anti-establishment or anti-bureaucracy.
Its like a big castle with walls that you are banging on the outside trying to get in.
So I always had a problem with that in some way.
I dont know why.
I cant really articulate for you…just the system is the system.
And I think that, to me, is thematic of these characters.
Not being married and not having children, these movies are like my babies.
So you put so much of you into them.Runner Runnerwas the toughest.
Its actually quite the antithesis.
I never really have that expectation once the movie is made what it will or wont do.
It does what it does.
They market it how they market it.
So much of that is so out of my control.
If I held onto that Id make myself crazy.
How did this shoot go in terms of logistics compared to your other films?
Youre working with a bigger scope on this film.
You know, to have a chase in an independent movie like that was insane.
But every day we went to set, I had a little piece of John Leguizamo running.
I had a piece of Tyrese Gibson running.
Literally, it was just like, OK.
Were shooting here in the hotel.
Run down the hall!
You know, it was that goofy.
Its how a movie should be run, and I credit that to Tom Rosenberg and his crew.
Runner Runner, sadly, it was new at the studio.
The movie was a mess in production.
Everything on the movie sadly was just a mess.
And this thing came together so fast.
So that made production challenging.
But I thought it was necessary.
This is your second time working with Bryan (afterLincoln Lawyer) and hes in the lead this time.
Can you talk about that relationship and having him just completely get absorbed into this role?
He carried the movie on his back.
But you are taking your cue from the guy who is there every day on set 16 hours tirelessly.
Hes just a leader at heart.
Its a tremendous thing.
He doesnt really lose his way.
He doesnt lose his sense of self.
Hes a really special man, truthfully.
Hes just a really special human being.
Did you spend time with Bob Mazur?
I spent years with Bob, actually.
And then Bryan spent a ton of time with Bob as well.
But prior to Cranston getting on board, I spent years with Bob.
Yeah, my mom and I both did.
Every step of the way.
I wouldnt make a decision without Bob Mazur.
I didnt grow up as an undercover customs agent.
That was not my history.
I dont want to just fictionalize it based off what I read.
I want to get dirty.
You mentioned your mom.
She wrote the screenplay.
How do you tell your mom, Mom, this scene won’t go…?
Were cut from the same cloth as far as how we operate in a lot of ways.
So telling her that early on was mighty, mighty difficult.
But I think it was just a matter of being relentless.
Hopefully those hardships made it worth it.
Our bond as professionals and mother and son is so much greater.
And weve experienced something that is just so rare.
So Im really proud of being a product of my parents development.
I read that the producer liked her pitch the best.
Ironically, it was not her pitch they liked her screenwriting the best.
My mom actually had never pitched before, so putting her in that position was not fair.
I dont want to say she bombed because shes quite presentable and articulate.
But she was not great in the pitch.
And that was the very un-Hollywood thing to do.
The spirit of this movie was uniquely independent.
I remember I ran into headaches, just even from the agency level, in casting Benjamin Bratt.
They were saying, Hes a TV guy.
Its like, No.
Benjamin Bratt is the guy.
Hes playing Roberto Alcaino.
Hes the best person…Its not Javier Bardem.
And hes a drug distributor!
You see that hes a family man with a daughter and a wife.
And thats exactly what happens to the real Bob Mazur.
So thats a good thing.
Whats the next rock you are going to try and roll up the hill and get made?
I definitely have some things in my back pocket that for years Ive been trying to get made.
I love my scriptScarpa.
I have to figure out when and where.
Im really proud of the scriptBiggerthat we have.
Im really proud of my scriptDysfunction.
Im really proud of my scriptIntricate.
I hate having to play all these sides against the middle.
I love the Marvel movies.
I love the comic movies.
But in the space within Im trying to carve myself out, these are real, real challenges.
I could definitely use a boost from the positivity of hopefully what transpires from this movie.
But I dont rely on it.
As I said, Im really resilient.
The Infiltratoropens in theaters on Wednesday (July 13).
