The UB Interview: Mario Van Peebles + Cast Talk ‘Outlaw Posse’

The magnificent new western “Outlaw Posse,” written & directed by Mario Van Peebles, hits select theaters this Friday March 1st.

1908. CHIEF (Mario Van Peebles) returns from years of hiding in Mexico to claim stolen gold hidden in the hills of Montana.

In his quest, he reunites an ensemble of fresh & familiar faces – together they fight off ANGEL, whose rationale to the gold leaves a trail of deception and dead bodies.

In the untamed Wild West of 1908, men in power take advantage of an unfair world where corruption and greed run deep.

Renegade cowboy Chief (Mario Van Peebles), eager to restore balance, assembles a daring group of outcasts and saddles up on a cross-country odyssey to reclaim stolen gold in unsettled territory.

Pursued by the vengeful lawman Angel (William Mapother), the posse is caught in a deadly game of survival and redemption, navigating the treacherous terrain of gunfights, showdowns, and horse chases. United by honor, they encounter allies such as Stagecoach Mary (Whoopi Goldberg) that shape their destiny.

As they venture closer to the hidden treasure, they soon learn survival is the only justice.

The amazing cast includes; Mario Van Peebles, William Mapother, John Carroll Lynch, D.C Young Fly, Mandela Van Peebles, Amber Reign Smith, Neil McDonough, Jake Manley, Allen Payne, Cam Gigandet, M. Emmet Walsh, with Edward James Olmos, Cedric the Entertainer and Whoopi Goldberg.

Director’s Statement

America’s race-ocracy seems to be making an ugly comeback with teacher censorship, legislative obstruction, and voting rights under renewed attack. Of course, during the turn of the century women of any color were not allowed to vote and men of color could be jailed and their homes burned just for exercising their right to vote or even own land. As our characters say in”Outlaw Posse”: “When the laws are unjust the just are outlaws!”

That said, the Wild West was not only brutal, it was also multicultural with approximately one out of every three or four Cowboys being black. As such, I wasn’t drawn to the reductive, traditional, whitewashed westerns, and I didn’t want to make a black western that was “reactive” to those pictures either. I was excited by the idea of seeing all of us. This, in some ways, mirrors the colorful diversity I grew up with in my own crazy family. I wanted to tell a father-son story inspired by the Johnny Cash song, “a boy named Sue,“ and informed by my own experiences as both a son and a father.

To keep it grounded, I tapped my own actor kid, Mandela, to play my on-screen son – much like my own father did with me in “Sweet Sweetback.” If America is a melting pot, then I wanted to cook this cinematic gumbo with laughter, love, and jalapeños. At the dawn of the century, we were all here — and it will take all of us to fulfill the promise that we originally dreamed up. Yeah, it’s true: today many of us are divided. We don’t break bread together or feel safe making fun of ourselves. My old man used to say “It’s boring to just hang out with people who look, think, and vote like you,” but that’s where a lot of us are at. I’m still a pessimistic-optimist. We may not watch the same news, or even share the same facts, but my hope is that some of us can still have that illusive beer summit, where we bring our expectations down low and enjoy the same raucous ride through the wild wild West together. And who knows, maybe we’ll come out the other side a little less divided.

–Mario Van Peebles

Mario Van Peebles is a consummate filmmaking Renaissance man. “When you grow up in a by any means necessary independent filmmaking family, you’ve got to learn to do it all,” says Van Peebles.
Mario broke out as an actor in Clint Eastwood‘s “Heartbreak Ridge”. He played political icon, Malcolm, X in “Ali” directed by Michael Man. Mario’s directing feature debut was the gangster classic hit “New Jack City”. He followed that up by starring in and directing his bold black western “Posse”- which also featured his film making father Melvin. Mario teamed up with his dad to make the feature “Panther” about the rise of the Black Panther party for self defense.

Mario directed and produced, Melvin wrote and produced. The acclaimed controversial film is now a cult classic and won the Silver Leopard award. Mario wrote, starred, produced, and directed “Baadasssss!”- the odyssey about his maverick father’s making of his game changing film “Sweet Sweetback’s Badasssss Song!”. Playing your own father is like psychotherapy on celluloid,” jokes Mario. “Badasssss!” received Ebert and Roepers best movie of the year award. Van Peebles wrote, starred, produced, and directed the indie feature, “Armed” which challenges the powerful gun industry. In it, Mario plays a self proclaimed “Good Guy” with easy access to meds and weapons of war. An advocate for education and environmental justice, Van Peebles produced “Bring Your Game” for at-risk youth. “Mario’s Green House” chronicles he and his family’s humorous attempts to go green in materialistic Hollywood. “We never got to full green, but we did get to Olive” says Van Peebles. “With this new wild western, the circle is complete,” says Mario. “I got to do “Posse” with my dad and “Outlaw Posse” with my son Mandela. This life has been incredible. My father gave me my first lines in a feature film, and I gave him his last lines in a feature film.”

William Mapother has appeared in over ninety films and television shows. Recent film work includes the features “On Sacred Ground,” “A Warrior’s Heart,”“Edwin Boyd,” and the comedy “FDR: American Badass.”

John Carroll Lynch has worked with many great filmmakers including Martin Scorsese, David Fincher, Clint Eastwood, Miguel Arteta, Karyn Kusama, John Lee Hancock, Pablo Lorain, and the Coen Brothers (who cast him opposite Francis McDormand in 1995’s Academy Award winning film “Fargo”).

Mandela Van Peebles can currently be seen starring in the SyFy comedy “Reginald the Vampire” as the vampire life coach to co-star Jacob Batalon. His recent dramatic roles include Sam, in the critically acclaimed Taylor Sheridan and Antoine Fuqua-produced “Mayor of Kingston,” alongside Jeremy Renner and Oscar-winner Dianne Wiest.

Amber Reign Smith is an American actress, director, and casting director who is known for “Open,” “You Should’ve Told Me,” “Kold and Windy,” “Wu-Tang: An American Saga,” “Rap Sh!t,”and “Til My Casket Drops.” Amber can currently be seen on “Complicated: Atlanta,” “Judge Me Not,” and Hulu’s “The Other Black Girl”.

Jake Manley may be best known for his leading role as ‘Jack Morton’ in Netflix’s “The Order.”He can currently be seen in Amazon’s “The Consultant” alongside Christoph Waltz. Jake will next be seen starring in Lionsgate’s “Do Not Enter.”

Mario and his son Mandela Van Peebles, along with John Carroll Lynch, William Mapother, Jake Manley and Amber Reign Smith talk “Outlaw Posse,” with Aries from UB.

Melvin shares why it was important to bring the story to film, while Mandela talks about his role and the joys of working with his father.

John Carroll Lynch and William Mapother dish on what is was like working with the amazing cast and more.

Jake Manley speaks on why he wanted to take the role, while Amber Reign Smith gushes on the experience of working on the film.

*Correction in Video Should Say John Carroll Lynch*