Brian Helgeland’s illustrious screenwriting resume spans over 25 years and a wide range of genres, from slasher flicks like A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master to post-apocalyptic dramas like The Postman, action flicks like The Taking of Pelham 123, sports dramas like 42, and even a bit of medieval mayhem like A Knight’s Tale.
But the pièce de résistance is undoubtedly L. A. Confidential, the tense crime thriller that earned the writer an Academy Award in 1997.
Similarly diverse is Helgeland’s directing body of work. Eight years have passed since his previous foray into filmmaking, the 2015 Tom Hardy drama Legend, which dealt with the notorious Kray brothers, gangster leaders.
Finestkind is his most recent feature. Finestkind explores the criminal underground in a similar vein to Legend, except instead of 1960s London, it takes place in a fishing town in Massachusetts. Our current understanding is as follows.
Where to watch Finestkind?
On Friday, December 15, 2023, Finestkind will be streamable on Paramount Plus. At this moment, viewers may watch it online.
Finestkind Plot
In Finestkind, actors Ben Foster and Toby Wallace play siblings who grew up in separate realities but are reunited one summer as adults. During a commercial fishing operation, the brothers find themselves in a difficult situation where they are forced to make a deal with a vicious Boston criminal organization.
The plot takes on a primal tone as a result. A young lady, played by Jenna Ortega, is entangled in the heart of all this danger. Bonds between brothers, friends, lovers, and even a father and son (Tommy Lee Jones) are tested to the limit, and sacrifices are inevitable.
Finestkind Cast
- Ben Foster as Tom
Tom Eldridge, played by Ben Foster, is one of the two brothers at the story’s core in Finestkind. Tom steps in to captain his father’s fishing boat, “Finestkind,” as the film depicts it.
- Toby Wallace as Charlie
In the 2023 Paramount+ picture, Toby Wallace portrays Tom’s younger brother, Charlie Sykes. Charlie unexpectedly re-establishes contact with Tom. Unfortunately, he and Finestkind’s fishing crew go into difficulties when his brother gets them into illegal fishing in the Canadian seas.
- Jenna Ortega as Mabel
Finestkind features Jenna Ortega as Charlie’s girlfriend, Mabel. As Charlie searches for a means to pay the $100,000 fine stemming from the fishing incident in Canada, Mabel, who is already affiliated with the Boston criminal group when viewers first meet her, drags him into that world.
- Tommy Lee Jones as Ray
Tommy Lee Jones, who portrays Tom Eldridge’s father Ray, is the last major actor in Finestkind on Paramount+. After hearing about the $100,000 fine—and the possibility of losing the boat—Ray is very upset with his son.
The other cast members are as follows:
- Ismael Cruz Córdova as Costa
- Aaron Stanford as Skeemo
- Scotty Tovar as Nunes
- Tim Daly as Gary Sykes
- Fernanda Andrade as Anne-Marie
- Charlie Thurston as Mr. White
- Meghan Leathers as Kathy
- Lolita Davidovich as Donna Sykes
- Clayne Crawford as Pete Weeks
- Lonnie Farmer as Rocky
- Brian McDonald as Paul
- Chris Matacunas as Mark
- Rebecca Gibel as Paulette
Finestkind Creators
The film Finestkind was written and directed by Brian Helgeland, who won an Oscar. Notable for creating the scripts for LA Confidential and Mystic River, respectively, the screenwriter-producer-director has won several honors, including the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay (among many more), and has received nominations for the latter two from the Academy, BAFTA, and Golden Globes.
A Knight’s Tale, Payback, 42, and Legend are among Helgeland’s other notable works, along with the biopics and the films. The film’s producers—Gary Foster, Russ Kransoff, Taylor Sheridan, and David C. Glasser—are affiliated with 101 Studios, Krasnoff/Foster Entertainment, and Bosque Ranch; executive producers include Bob Yari, Jennifer Roth, Ron Burkle, David Hutkin, and Gary Foster.
Crille Forsberg (David Bowie: Lazarus) was the cinematographer for Finestkind, while Primetime Emmy-winning and Oscar-nominated composer Carter Burwell (The Banshees of Inisherin) was in charge of the score.
Finestkind Trailer
Just lately, we received the official trailer for Finestkind, which gives us a two-minute sneak peek at the plot. Watching the video (up there) reveals how the heroes of the film get themselves involved with a violent gang after a disastrous error.
The film’s principal actors—Toby Wallace, Jenna Ortega, Ben Foster, and Tommy Lee Jones—were introduced in a first-look photo that was posted with the trailer at the film festival’s introduction of the film.