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Jeremy Renner On The True CIA Guns-and-Drugs Plot Behind ‘Kill The Messenger’

Alex Constantine - January 10, 2015

Star Jeremy Renner and producer Scott Stuber talk about Kill the Messenger, their film about Gary Webb, the Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter. Webb uncovered a CIA plot in the 1980s that funneled cocaine into the United States to finance arms purchases and other operations in Central America, then faced a campaign to undermine and deny his work.

Renner and Stuber talk about discovering Webb’s true story at the heart of the movie, which they made for $10.4 million, despite trotting the globe for backdrops.

Messenger’s cast is dotted with other notables, including Robert Patrick, Richard Schiff, Rosemary DeWitt, Gil Bellows and Paz Vega. Michael Kenneth Williams plays Ricky Ross, at one time the single biggest drug dealer in Los Angeles.

The movie was directed by Michael Cuesta from a script by Peter Landesman, based on books by Webb and Nick Schou. It opened in limited release October 10, and is distributed by Focus Features. It has grossed $2.45 million worldwide so far.

Star Jeremy Renner and producer Scott Stuber talk about Kill the Messenger, their film about Gary Webb, the Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter. Webb uncovered a CIA plot in the 1980s that funneled cocaine into the United States to finance arms purchases and other operations in Central America, then faced a campaign to undermine and deny his work.

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