Joe Bell (film)

The film centres on the true story of Joe Bell, a man who started to undertake a walk across the United States to raise awareness of bullying following the suicide of his son Jadin.[2]

• Mark Wahlberg as Joe Bell
• Reid Miller as Jadin Bell
• John Murray as Lost Boy
• Connie Britton as Lola Bell
• Maxwell Jenkins as Joseph Bell
• Gary Sinise
• Blaine Maye as Boyd Banks
• Ash Santos as Kim
• Igby Rigney as Chance
• Morgan Lily as Marcie
• Scout Smith as Colleen
• Cassie Beck as Mrs. Swift

In April 2015, it was announced Cary Joji Fukunaga would direct the film, from a screenplay by Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana. Fukunaga would produce the film, while Daniela Taplin Lundberg, Riva Marker and Eva Maria Daniels would produce the film under their VisionChaos Productions and Parliament of Owls banners, respectively. A24 would produce and distribute the film.[3] In April 2019, Mark Wahlberg, Reid Miller, Connie Britton, Maxwell Jenkins and Gary Sinise joined the cast of the film. Reinaldo Marcus Green would direct the film, replacing Fukunaga who was still attached as a producer, with Wahlberg, Jake Gyllenhaal and Stephen Levinson serving as producers, and A24 no longer distributing and producing.[4][5][6]

The film had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 14, 2020.[9] Shortly after, Solstice Studios acquired distribution rights to the film for $20 million.[10] It was scheduled to be released on February 19, 2021.[11] However, it was pulled from the schedule.[12]

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 53% based on 30 reviews, with an average rating of 5.60/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "Good Joe Bell's heartfelt message - and Reid Miller's stirring breakout performance - are unfortunately undermined by formulaic storytelling."[13] On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 61 out of 100, based on 12 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[14]

• Joe Bell at IMDb
• Joe Bell at Rotten Tomatoes