‘Borderline’ Trailer: Ray Nicholson Stalks Pop Star Samara Weaving in ’90s-Set ‘Violently Romantic Comedy’

Ray Nicholson, with his signature inherited grin, has already gone viral for playing unhinged beaus in “Smile 2” and “I Love You Forever.” Now, Nicholson is getting into “King of Comedy” territory with the “violently romantic comedy” thriller, “Borderline.”

The ’90s-set feature, which is “Cocaine Bear” scribe Jimmy Warden‘s highly-anticipated directorial debut, is led by Samara Weaving, who plays a pop star stalked by Nicholson’s deranged character. Eric Dane is cast as Weaving’s bodyguard and only hope of escaping the contrived wedding planned by her obsessed fan. Alba Batista and Jimmie Fails also star.

The official synopsis reads: “‘Borderline’ is an edge-of-your-seat thriller that follows a dangerously persistent stalker (Nicholson) who invades the home of a ‘90s pop superstar (Weaving) with grand delusions of a wedding. With her life on the line and help from her loyal bodyguard, she must escape the stalker’s sinister grip before they tie the knot.”

“Borderline” is produced by Margot Robbie’s LuckyChap and will be released by Magnet Releasing, the genre arm of Magnolia Pictures. The producers include LuckyChap’s Tom Ackerley, Josey McNamara, Hadeel Reda, and Brian Duffield. Colleen Camp, Productivity Media’s William G. Santor, Andrew Chang-Sang, John Hills, Radiant’s Mimi Steinbauer, Brightlight Pictures’ Shawn Williamson, and Jameson Parker are executive producing. 

“It was an absolute pleasure to make this movie with such an extraordinary team of actors, crew, and producers,” writer/director Warden said in a press statement. “Across the board — from the executives at Magnet, PMI, and Radiant to the background actors who agreed to stay late as we doused an 11-year-old in fake blood — I’m indebted to them all. The film is wild and I can’t wait for the world to see it.”

Warden previously told IndieWire that “Borderline” is a home invasion film that takes place in Los Angeles. “A pop star’s home gets invaded, and the man, played by Ray Nicholson, is an obsessed fan and he thinks that he’s going into his wedding. So he manipulates all these things to make it feel like it’s his wedding,” Warden said. “We’re calling it a violently romantic comedy at this point.”

He added at the time, “I write a lot of movies like [‘Cocaine Bear’], where it’s like you can take it up to a certain line, and if you straddle that line, you’re going to make people feel uncomfortable, but if you go over that line, you’re going to make people laugh.”

Lead star Weaving, who previously collaborated with her real-life husband Warden on “The Babysitter: Killer Queen,” told IndieWire that “Borderline” was the “most fun” experience she’s had on set.

“[Jimmy is] incredible to work with. He’s so driven and so ambitious and a bit of a perfection, almost to a fault,” Weaving said. “He’s in the edit [room] right now and it’s just looking cooler and cooler and cooler every time. The whole cast is just so good. Ray and Alba are the best. It’s so weird and bonkers. Oh my god, and Jimmie Fails, incredible!”

She continued, “I think people are going to be like, ‘What am I watching?!’ You’ve seen ‘Cocaine Bear.’ It’s a mixture of different genres and ‘Borderline’ is the same thing, if not more insane. Well, it’s hard to top a cocaine bear, ain’t it? But [Jimmy] has got a mental brain and I think people are going to love it.”

“Borderline” will hit theaters and be available on digital platforms on Friday, March 14 from Magnet Releasing. Check out the trailer, an IndieWire exclusive, below.