Frank Grillo has been cast to lead "Show of Hands," a political kidnapping comedy written and directed by P.J. Pesce, which is set to film in California using a state tax credit. The exclusive report matters as another notable film role for Grillo, best known for action and genre work in "Superman," "Peacemaker" and "Tulsa King," here taking on a comedic part described as letting audiences see a different side of him.

Grillo will play Barlow Galligan, a Cadillac dealership owner, small-town conservative mayor and congressional candidate, whose broke film-student son Jimmi kidnaps him to extort funding for his debut feature, set in the volatile week before the 2024 US presidential election. The scheme spirals as the ransom demand grows from $25,000 to $1 million, rival criminals get involved, and the plot becomes tangled with the Galligan family's political and personal rifts; Rob Weiss, Noam Dromi and Grillo are producing, with Pesce praising Grillo's blend of "force, comic timing and emotional complexity" for the role.