Other films this year include Safety Glass, starring Amanda Peet, Steve Coogan and Hillary Duff (set around the Challenger space shuttle tragedy), and playing opposite Joseph Gordon-Levitt in a New York City-based drama, Uncertainty. In March, she’ll start on Dream of the Romans, co-starring Lauren Graham. “It’s all very exciting,” she said.
A month ago, Ms. Thirlby was among the crush of parka-wearing film devotees that descended upon Park City, Utah, for the Sundance Film Festival. She stayed for the entire time, seeing tons of movies (and talking enthusiastically about all of them). Her film, The Wackness, won the audience award there, and had even the tired-out press folks at industry screenings bursting into applause. The movie is set in 1994-era New York City, and focuses on a young pot dealer (played by Josh Peck) who trades drugs for therapy sessions with Sir Ben Kingsley, and falls for his step-daughter—the leggy, unnervingly self-assured Ms. Thirlby. The Wackness was quickly snatched up for distribution, and will be released this summer, so prepare yourself now for a comeback of all things Biggie and A Tribe Called Quest.
“I was 6,” Ms. Thirlby pointed out (sigh) when asked about her memories of that era. “But that music is so familiar to me. When I was a teenager I became really obsessed with old-school hip-hop. Some of my favorite songs are on The Wackness soundtrack.” Oh, really? “Seriously,” she said. “I have a custom-made rhythm rug … you know, like from the ‘Can I Kick It?’” She then busted out some Tribe: “Wipe your feet really good on the rhythm rug/If you feel the urge to freak, do the jitterbug/Come and spread your arms if you really need a hug.” She laughed. “I could just keep going and going.”
