Tomei will play Mendes’ boss, a domineering auction house executive, while Olin will portray Renaux’s mother, a wealthy art dealer. Producers Mike Karz and Bill Bindley describe the new additions as “both enormously talented and iconic, and we are thrilled to be working with them on this project.”
Both actresses come with extensive resumes. Tomei’s big breakout role came in 1992’s My Cousin Vinny, a part that also netted her an unexpected Oscar for Best Supporting Actress; she was subsequently Oscar-nominated for her roles in 2001’s In The Bedroom and 2008’s The Wrestler. She’s no stranger to romantic comedies, as she boasts appearances in Only You, What Women Want, and Someone Like You. After appearing in last year’s smash hit Spider-Man: No Way Home, she can currently be seen in the drama Delia’s Gone, and will next appear in the Anne Hathaway romantic comedy She Came To Me.
Swedish actress Olin was mentored by legendary filmmaker Ingmar Bergman, and made her international breakthrough in 1988’s The Unbearable Lightness of Being. Oscar-nominated for her turn in 1989’s Enemies, A Love Story, and well-known to American moviegoers for her roles in Romeo is Bleeding, Chocolat, and The Reader, she will be seen in the upcoming second season of Prime Video’s Hunters, and will star in Lasse Hallström’s Hilma as Swedish artist Hilma af Klint.
Developed by Mendes and her producing partner Rachel Matthews, Upgraded was executive produced by Mendes, Matthews, Josie Rosen, and Matt Williams, and was scripted by Christine Lenig, Justin Matthews and Luke Roberts. Bindley and Karz are producing for Gulfstream Pictures, with Lena Roklin for Luber Roklin Entertainment, Piers Tempest for Tempo Productions, and Karl Hall. Helmer Carlson Young is an actor-director who starred in the film Premature and the TV series Scream; her first feature as director, The Blazing World, premiered last year. Mendes can next be seen alongside Maya Hawke in the black comedy Do Revenge, which debuts on Netflix this month.
Upgraded has entered production in the UK.
