SALT LAKE CITY — Beginning April 15, actors Mark Wahlberg and Connie Britton will be spending a lot of time in Utah.
The actors will be in Salt Lake and Summit counties through late May filming “Good Joe Bell,” a new film about Oregonian Joe Bell, who planned a walk across America to raise awareness about bullying and suicide after his son, Jadin, a gay 15-year-old, died by suicide in 2013. The news was announced Monday through the Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED), in conjunction with the Utah Film Commission. The GOED approved the project, as well as another smaller film, “My Heart Can’t Beat Unless You Tell It To,” to receive state film incentives.
According to a news release, these two films will generate an estimated economic impact of $7 million, and create more than 220 local jobs.
According to a document from the GOED Board, the approved tax credit for “Good Joe Bell” won’t exceed $1,376,494, which represents 20 percent of the dollars the production will leave in state.
“Good Joe Bell” boasts an impressive roster of actors, writers, directors and producers. The film will be directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green, who directed the 2018 Sundance award-winner “Monsters and Men.” Writers Diana Ossana and Larry McMurtry, who won the best adapted screenplay Oscar for 2005’s “Brokeback Mountain,” wrote the “Good Joe Bell” script. Jake Gyllenhaal and Mark Wahlberg are also listed among the film’s producers.
“My Heart Can’t Beat Unless You Tell It To” will film in Salt Lake, Wasatch, Summit, Weber and Davis counties. It is produced by Kenny Riches, who also produced the 2015 Sundance Film Festival offering “The Strongest Man.”