State of Play Movie Cast, Plot and Everything to Know

Nov. 26, 2009

State of Play

Release Date: Friday, April 17, 2009 Nationwide

Helen Mirren, Ben Affleck, Paul Abbott, Jason Bateman, Robin Wright, Russell Crowe, Jeff Daniels, Liza Chasin, Rachel McAdams, Billy Ray, Tony Gilroy, Matthew Michael Carnahan, Kevin Macdonald, Debra Hayward, Tracy Falco, E. Bennett Walsh, Andrew Hauptman

PG-13 Drama 2 hrs, 12 m

2.9

74% WILL SEE

26% WON'T SEE

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Plot

What's the story about?

Oscar® winner Russell Crowe leads an all-star cast in a blistering thriller about a rising congressman and an investigative journalist embroiled in an case of seemingly unrelated, brutal murders. Crowe plays D.C. reporter Cal McAffrey, whose street smarts lead him to untangle a mystery of murder and collusion among some of the nation's most promising political and corporate figures in "State of Play," from acclaimed director Kevin Macdonald ("The Last King of Scotland").

Handsome, unflappable U.S. Congressman Stephen Collins (Ben Affleck) is the future of his political party: an honorable appointee who serves as the chairman of a committee overseeing defense spending. All eyes are upon the rising star to be his party's contender for the upcoming presidential race. Until his research assistant/mistress is brutally murdered and buried secrets come tumbling out.

McAffrey has the dubious fortune of both an old friendship with Collins and a ruthless editor, Cameron (Oscar® winner Helen Mirren), who has assigned him to investigate. As he and partner Della (Rachel McAdams) try to uncover the killer's identity, McAffrey steps into a cover-up that threatens to shake the nation's power structures. And in a town of spin-doctors and wealthy politicos, he will discover one truth: when billions are at stake, no one's integrity, love or life is ever safe.

Drama Suspense Thriller

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Top Cast

The lead cast starring in State of Play.

Russell Crowe
Kraven the Hunter, Land of Bad
Ben Affleck
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, Zack Snyder's Justice League
Helen Mirren
Fast X, White Bird
Rachel McAdams
The Notebook, The Family Stone
Robin Wright
Here, Wonder Woman
Jason Bateman
Carry-On, Zootopia
Jeff Daniels
The Martian, Dumb and Dumber To

Crew Behind the Film

The State of Play behind-the-scenes crew and production team.

The film's director Kevin Macdonald last directed The Mauritanian and Whitney. The film's writer Matthew Michael Carnahan last wrote Dark Waters and The Snowman.

Director: Kevin Macdonald
Screenwriters: Matthew Michael Carnahan
Paul Abbott
Billy Ray
Producers: Paul Abbott
Tracy Falco
Andrew Hauptman

Studios: Universal Pictures
Production Company: Andell Entertainment; Mission Pictures; Relativity Studios; Working Title Films

Additional Information

MPA Rating: PG-13 Parents Strongly Cautioned for some violence, language including sexual references, and brief drug content
Runtime: 2 hrs, 12 m
Tagline: Not available
Also known as: Not available
Language: English

All Trailers

Official State of Play movie trailers and clips.

No trailers available.

Production Details

What we know about the State of Play movie production.

Key Facts

Based on the popular BBC miniseries by Paul Abbott.

Production Updates

Dec 2008

Completed

The film was tagged as Completed.

Release Dates

When was the film released?

State of Play was released in nationwide movie theaters on Friday, April 17, 2009. in around 2,803 theaters There were 8 other movies released on the same date, including 17 Again, Crank: High Voltage and Lemon Tree.

Movie Theaters

2009-04-17 Nationwide

United States

Now Available

Digital (Ultra HD) & more