Durning joins 'Amateurs'

Film starts shooting Feb. 2

By ADAM DAWTREY

LONDON — Charles Durning, who was honored Sunday with the lifetime achievement award from the Screen Actors Guild, has joined the cast of British comedy “A Bunch of Amateurs,” which starts shooting Feb. 2 on the Isle of Man.

Durning will take the role of a sleazy Hollywood agent who tricks his client, a fading action star played by Burt Reynolds, into travelling to England to play King Lear in an amateur charity production.

Reynolds presented Durning with his SAG award. They are long-time friends who have appeared in several movies together, along with the TV series “Evening Shade.”

“A Bunch of Amateurs” is directed by Andy Cadiff, and produced by David Parfitt of Trademark Films. CinemaNX is putting up 70% of the budget, with the remainder coming from Limelight and Lipsync.