A Captain’s Duty

Tom Hanks to play Captain Phillips in a pirate film which may be titled Maersk Alabama after the name of Captain Phillips’ ship. The film will be concerned largely with Captain Phillips, as he is held hostage for three days in a small lifeboat before Navy SEALs rescued him, killing three pirates in the process.

Tom Hanks to Film ‘Captain Phillips’
Movie is based on the real-life ship captain rescued from Somali pirates in 2008 by the U.S. military.
By Robert Fucci

Get ready, Sudbury! Hollywood is planning to make another stop in town, and there’s one A-list actor who’s leading the charge.

Oscar-winning actor Tom Hanks is planning to film scenes from his upcoming movie “Captain Phillips” in Sudbury’s Town Center and the Wayside Inn on March 29.

“There has been an advanced team or site scouting team that has been looking at Town Center and looking at different angles to use for a drive-thru scene,” Board of Selectmen Chairman Larry O’Brien said.

“Captain Phillips” is based on a book real-life Capt. Richard Phillips wrote about his rescue from Somali pirates in 2008, titled “A Captain’s Duty: Somali Pirates, Navy SEALs, and Dangerous Days at Sea.” The film is scheduled for release March 23, 2013.

Administrative Assistant to the Selectmen Mary McCormack said filming is planned to start late in day, with the driving scene going through Town Center.

“The next thing we heard is (Hanks) will be going to the Wayside Inn to film scenes with (actress Catherine Keener, who plays Capt. Phillips’ wife, Andrea),” she said.

McCormack also added she had not heard final confirmation on the plans to film in town.

A message left for Wayside Inn Innkeeper John Cowden Jr. was not returned.

Publicist Alex Worman said he wouldn’t have information on filming plans until next week.

The last time a Hollywood movie was filmed in town was for “Ghosts of Girlfriends Past,” starring Matthew McConaughey and Jennifer Garner in 2009. A wedding scene was taken at Martha & Mary Chapel.

Hanks won consecutive Academy Awards for Best Actor for his roles as Andrew Beckett in “Philadelphia” and as the title character in “Forrest Gump.”

Source: Sudbury Patch