Art of More S2 Press Kit

Art of More S2

Press Kit
OVERVIEW
The second season of “The Art of More” is a high-stakes journey of greed and desperation through the New York auction scene where it’s not just the art and memorabilia that comes at a high price. Our characters attempts to achieve power, revenge and greater levels of success only create complexities that will find them becoming more like the frauds and forgeries that they are attempting to sell. For Graham Connor (Christian Cooke), that means re-starting his career in the auction business to help the FBI take down a prominent collector who secretly runs a terrorism-funding smuggling ring. Roxanna Whitman’s (Kate Bosworth) challenge is to keep a cool and sober head as she makes her ultimate play for the top spot at DeGraaf’s. Sam Brukner (Dennis Quaid) can easily summon his signature swagger to plot his social comeback with his own museum, but he finds himself in uncharted emotional waters when two strong-willed women come into his life. With the IRS in relentless pursuit, Arthur Davenport (Cary Elwes) is desperate to reclaim his lifestyle as a New York socialite and art world tastemaker but has no idea where to start. As our characters chase what they’re after – success, power, money, status, love, absolution – they discover that past sins rarely stay buried, bad habits die hard and enemies should never be underestimated.

CAST BIOS

CHRISTIAN COOKE

Graham Connor
Continuing to emerge as one of Hollywood's most engaging and sought after talents, Cooke recently wrapped his work on the independent feature ELECTRICITY directed by Bryn Higgins. Other work in film includes LOVE, ROSIE where he starred opposite Sam Claflin and Lily Collins, HELLO CARTER, Relativity Media’s ROMEO & JULIET, UNCONDITIONAL LOVE and CEMETERY JUNCTION written and directed by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant.
Cooke has also made an impact on the small screen being seen as a series regular on Starz’s “Magic City” and Lifetime’s “Witches of East End.” He starred opposite Peter Mullan in the BAFTA Award-nominated BBC miniseries “Stonemouth,” adapted from the acclaimed novel by Iain Banks. Additional television credits include “The Promise,” “Trinity,” “Demons,” “Dr. Who” and “The Chase.”

KATE BOSWORTH

Roxanna Whitman
Kate Bosworth has made the seamless transition from a young Hollywood starlet to one of today’s leading ladies. Her most recent films include the critically acclaimed STILL ALICE, starring opposite Academy Award® winner Julianne Moore; the suspense thriller BEFORE I WAKE; BUS 657 with Robert De Niro; and the action drama LIFE ON THE LINE with John Travolta. Bosworth has starred in several dramas for director Michael Polish, including 90 MINUTES IN HEAVEN, AMNESIAC and BIG SUR. She will next be seen in the highly anticipated BBC miniseries SS-GB, starring with Sam Riley, and is currently shooting the lead role in the heist film FINDING STEVE MCQUEEN.

Bosworth made her feature film debut in Robert Redford’s THE HORSE WHISPERER (1988) and had her breakthrough role starring in the hit BLUE CRUSH. She also had leading roles in Bryan Singer’s critically acclaimed hit SUPERMAN RETURNS and the crime drama 21. Other feature credits include the action thriller HOMEFRONT, thriller BLACK ROCK, drama ANOTHER HAPPY DAY; and she starred opposite Kevin Spacey in his directorial debut, the Bobby Darin biopic BEYOND THE SEA.

CARY ELWES

Arthur Davenport
Cary Elwes’ career has encompassed a range of critical and popular successes for both the large and small screens alike. Elwes recently completed filming THE BILLIONAIRES BOYS CLUB opposite Ansel Elgort, Taron Egerton and Kevin Spacey, and will be seen starring in the upcoming theatrical releases THE QUEEN OF SPAIN, opposite Penelope Cruz for Academy Award winning director, Fernando Trueba (BELLE EPOQUE); SUGAR MOUNTAIN, opposite Jason Momoa; and WE DON’T BELONG HERE, opposite Catherine Keener and Anton Yelchin. His most recent films include director Rob Reiner’s BEING CHARLIE, which bowed at the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival to rave reviews. Cary recently produced and wrote ELVIS NIXON which starred Kevin Spacey and Michael Shannon which was released by Bleeker Street. Elwes is perhaps best known for his roles in Academy Award winning films GLORY, DAYS OF THUNDER and BRAM STOKER'S DRACULA, box-office hits HOT SHOTS!, TWISTER, LIAR LIAR and SAW, and the cult classics ROBIN HOOD: MEN IN TIGHTS and THE PRINCESS BRIDE. He has also played popular recurring roles in Golden Globe and Emmy Award winning television series “The X-Files,” and the highly rated comedy series “Psych.” Other TV credits include “Seinfeld” and the critically acclaimed miniseries “From the Earth to the Moon,” “Uprising,” “The Riverman,” and “Pope John Paul II.” Last year, Elwes released his first memoir, AS YOU WISH: INCONCEIVABLE TALES FROM THE MAKING OF THE PRINCESS BRIDE, which became a New York Times Bestseller and the paperback will be released this October.

DENNIS QUAID

Samuel Brukner
Dennis Quaid is renowned for his distinct portrayals in both comedic and dramatic roles over the past forty years. He was most recently seen in the fact-based drama TRUTH and has completed filming the second season of the BAFTA award-nominated television series “Fortitude.” He began to gain attention in the late 1970s for roles in such films as BREAKING AWAY before gaining public and critical acclaim for his role in the 1983 release THE RIGHT STUFF. Other notable credits include THE ROOKIE, THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW, TRAFFIC, VANTAGE POINT, FREQUENCY, THE PARENT TRAP, and SOUL SURFER. For his role in Todd Haynes’ FAR FROM HEAVEN he won the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor, the Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor, the Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actor and the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male. In 2010 he was nominated for numerous awards including a SAG Award®, an Emmy©, and a Golden Globe© for his portrayal of Bill Clinton in the TV movie A SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP. Quaid will next be seen in A DOG’S PURPOSE, from Universal. He starts production on KIN with James Franco in November.

PATRICK SABONGUI

Hassan Al Afshar
Patrick Sabongui has worked extensively in television and film, and is well known to fans of the CW’s “The Flash” for his role as Captain David Singh. He was most recently seen in Crackle’s DEAD RISING 2: ENDGAME, and the feature films ON THE FARM and INTERROGATION. He has a recurring role in the upcoming season of the Emmy winning “Homeland” and is featured in several films slated for 2017, including POWER RANGERS, SCORCHED EARTH and DRONE.
Other film credits include GODZILLA, NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM: SECRET OF THE TOMB, WHITE HOUSE DOWN and 300. Television credits include “The 100,” “Almost Human,” “Nikita,” “24,” “Fringe” and “Covert Affairs.” Over the course of his career he has worked with such prominent directors Steven Spielberg, Joss Whedon, Roland Emmerich, Zack Snyder, Richard Donner and Gary Fleder. His background as a competitive athlete, martial-artist, and mountaineer has added a dimension of action to many of his roles.
A native of Montreal, Sabongui grew up in a trilingual household and speaks English, French and Arabic. He began his career while studying drama in the 1990s and his formal training includes an MFA in Acting at the University of California. His recent stage credits include the Canadian premiere of the Pulitzer Prize-winning drama “Disgraced” and “Inside the Seed.” Sabongui has also written, produced and directed several award-winning short films and live plays and continues to develop new works as a filmmaker and theatre artist.

SANDRINE HOLT

Isabel Perry
Sandrine Holt has amassed a wide-ranging list of film and television credits since making her feature debut in Bruce Beresford’s epic BLACK ROBE, for which she received a Canadian Genie nomination for Best Supporting Actress. She is currently co-starring on the CBS reboot of “MacGyver,” was recently seen recurring in USA's acclaimed series “Mr. Robot” as E-Corp’s chief counsel Susan Jacobs, and also recurred on AMC’s “Fear the Walking Dead” as Dr. Exner. She also guest-stars in the upcoming season of Netflix’s critically lauded “Love.”
Holt is perhaps most recognizable from the award-winning Netflix series “House of Cards,” playing Robin Wright’s colleague Gillian Cole. She subsequently co-starred as Julie in Carlton Cuse’s A&E series “The Retuned,” a remake of the critically acclaimed French series of the same name. Other credits as a series regular include “24” and CBS’s “Hostages.”
Her film credits include TERMINATOR GENISYS and CHINESE PUZZLE. She also appeared in the blockbusters UNDERWORLD: AWAKENING and RESIDENT EVIL: APOCALYPSE.

MATT FREWER

Paul Rice
Award winning actor Matt Frewer has created a host of memorable characters in television and film during a career that spans four decades. In addition to “The Art of More,” he can be seen in recurring roles in NBC’s new sci-fi drama “Timeless,” BBC America’s award-winning “Orphan Black” and Steven Soderbergh’s gritty hospital drama “The Knick.”
Among his many feature film credits are Steven Spielberg’s The BFG; NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM: SECRET OF THE TOMB; 50/50 with Seth Rogan and Joseph Gordon-Levitt; FOREVERLAND; FRANKIE AND ALICE with Halle Barry; two films with Zack Snyder, THE WATCHMEN and the 2004 remake DAWN OF THE DEAD, one of the top-grossing zombie films of all time. His most famous roles include Big Russ Thompson, Rick Moranis' neighbor in HONEY, I SHRUNK THE KIDS, and the nefarious computer genius in LAWNMOWER MAN 2: BEYOND CYBERSPACE.
Frewer has worked extensively in both American and Canadian-produced television. His miniseries credits include Stephen Spielberg’s “Taken, the Emmy nominated “Alice” and the Stephen King adaptations “Bag of Bones” and “The Stand.” TV movie credits include Hallmark’s recent BATTLEOF THE BULBS, the American Playhouse production LONG SHADOWS and TNT’s KISSINGER AND NIXON; he also starred as Sherlock Holmes in four telefilms that aired on the Hallmark channel in the U.S. His recent series credits include recurring roles on the hit TNT” Falling Skies,” Syfy’s “Eureka” and CBS’s “Doctor, Doctor.” He has also made guest appearances on many series including “Witches of Eastwick,” “St. Elsewhere,” “Miami Vice” and “Star Trek-The Next Generation.”
In addition to his long list of fine comedy and dramatic roles, Frewer will always be remembered for his groundbreaking work as Max Headroom, a clever, stuttering AI talk show host.

MERRIT PATTERSON

Olivia Bruckner
Born and raised in Whistler, British Columbia, Merritt Patterson took a liking to the arts at a young age. Patterson started dancing competitively at age 11 and added theatre and modeling to her pursuits during high school. In 2006, she won the "Canadian Herbal Essences' Teen Model Search" out of 10,000 girls. She made her acting debut with a recurring role on the ABC Family series “Kyle XY.” Several roles in films and television followed, including the Fox 2000 feature PERCY JACKSON: THE LIGHTING THIEF, the horror thriller THE HOLE, The CW’s “Supernatural” and the Disney Channel television movie RADIO REBEL.
Patterson most recently co-starred in the E! Network’s hit scripted series “The Royals,” alongside Elizabeth Hurley, William Moseley and Alexandra Park. She was also a series regular on the “Pretty Little Liars” spinoff series “Ravenswood,” which ran for one season on ABC Family. On the big screen, she was featured in WOLVES, opposite Jason Momoa, and John Stockwell’s KID CANNABIS. She had starring roles in the independent features RUFUS, PRIMARY and DAMAGED, opposite Chris Klein.
CREW BIOS

CHUCK ROSE

Creator/Writer/Executive Producer
An award-winning writer/director and best-selling author, Chuck Rose is currently developing the thriller “Heist” at NBC. Feature writing projects include his script ALMOST DANGEROUS, at Mandalay Pictures, STEPS and CRASHERS, both at Yari Film Group, and NERVOUS REX, a remake of the classic Danny Kaye film UP IN ARMS, for the Samuel Goldwyn Company.
Rose wrote and directed the film SIDE EFFECTS, starring Arye Gross, for Strike TV. In addition to the acclaim it has garnered on Strike TV, it was also a huge hit on the festival circuit. Other directing credits include the award-winning short film THE ELEVATOR and the feature COME AS YOU ARE starring James Russo. He is currently attached to direct the feature film JOE’S MOUNTAIN with Toronto based Breakthrough Entertainment.
A prolific playwright, he is the author of the critically acclaimed plays “Safe,” “Bedfellows” and “Weekend In Goshen,” and has had over a dozen plays produced both in New York and Los Angeles. His plays, “Eye to Eye” and “The Letter” both recently premiered off-Broadway. His novel, “Head Games” was recently the #2 thriller in the U.S. It is currently available on Amazon. A sequel is already in the works.

BRENDAN KELLY

Executive Producer
Brendan Kelly served as Writer/Co-Producer on Showtime's “Weeds” for multiple seasons. In addition, he has developed projects for Sony Pictures Television, Lions Gate, and the USA Network.

IRENE LITINSKY

Producer
Irene Litinsky is the head of the Montreal Production Center. She joined Muse in 2000, bringing over 20 years of production experience with her.

Throughout her career, Litinsky has collaborated with some of the industry’s top producers including Jodie Foster, Robert Greenwald, Ivan Reitman, Iain Smith, Robert Halmi Sr. and Robert Altman. She has worked with such distinguished directors as Steven Spielberg, Darren Aronofsky, Alan Rudolph, Robert Dornhelm, Vincent Ward, Christian Duguay and Paolo Barzman.

Litinsky was the Canadian Production Supervisor of Steven Spielberg’s THE TERMINAL and CATCH ME IF YOU CAN, BLADES OF GLORY and Darren Aronofsky’s THE FOUNTAIN. Her other feature film credits include THE DEAL, MRS. PARKER AND THE VICIOUS CIRCLE, MAP OF THE HUMAN HEART, WAKING THE DEAD and LEVITY.

Among her numerous television producer credits are: the SyFy hit TV series “Being Human”; the Golden Globe-nominated Lifetime mini-series “Human Trafficking” and the Emmy- and Golden Globe-nominated TNT movie THE WOOL CAP. Other miniseries credits include SyFy’s “The Phantom” and NBC’s “The Last Templar.” Television movies include DEAD LIKE ME; WARGAMES: THE DEAD CODE; BABY FOR SALE; BAD APPLE; WHEN ANGELS COME TO TOWN; OBSESSED; IT MUST BE LOVE; THE TOURNAMENT; the Sherlock Holmes movies THE SIGN OF FOUR, THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES and THE ROYAL SCANDAL; REVENGE OF THE LAND; THE AUDREY HEPBURN STORY; THE SLEEP ROOM; MILLION DOLLAR BABIES; ALL SOULS; and REDEEMER.

She is currently in production on the miniseries “The Kennedys After Camelot,” starring Katie Holmes and scheduled to premiere in 2017. She is also the supervising producer on DEATH WISH, starring Bruce Willis.

MANDY SAFAVI

Consulting Producer
Mandy Safavi has been an executive as some of the most prominent production companies in the entertainment business. Most recently, Safavi was President of Production for Melissa Rosenberg’s Tall Girls Productions (“Jessica Jones,’ TWILIGHT movies) at ABC Studios. She joined that company after more than six years as Executive Vice President and Executive Producer at Kurtzman/Orci’s K/O Paper Products (STAR TREK, TRANSFORMERS, COWBOYS AND ALIENS, THE PROPOSAL, EAGLE EYE). At K/O, Safavi executive produced the movie adaptation of the beloved books, ENDER’S GAME (Summit/Lionsgate), the television pilot “Locke & Key” (Fox), and produced three seasons of “Transformers Prime” animated series (TV/Hub network), which garnered her an Emmy Award in 2012.
Prior to that, Safavi was Senior VP of Development & Production at producer, Sid Ganis’ Out Of The Blue Entertainment (Sony), and VP of Development at Lynda Obst Productions (Paramount). She is proud to have started her career working for and being mentored by her professional heroes: writer/director Wesley Strick, and Sydney Pollack and Anthony Minghella at Mirage Enterprises.

GARY FLEDER

Consulting Producer
Director Gary Fleder brings a steady hand and photographer’s eye to his work in television and feature films. His feature credits include the recent action drama HOMEFRONT; the sports drama THE EXPRESS, winner of the 2009 ESPY Award for Best Sports Movie; and the hit thriller RUNAWAY JURY, adapted from the John Grisham novel. He made his feature directorial debut with 1995 ensemble thriller THINGS TO DO IN DENVER WHEN YOU’RE DEAD (1995), a black comedy that has earned cult status in both the U.S. and Europe. He subsequently directed the suspense thrillers KISS THE GIRLS and DON’T SAY A WORD, as well as the sci-fi thriller IMPOSTER, based on a Philip K. Dick story.

Fleder recently completed his 18th television pilot, affirming that he's one of the industry’s most successful pilot directors. In 2015, he helmed two successful pilots: “The Art of More” for Crackle and “Guilt” for Freeform (formerly ABC Family). His episodic series credits include the acclaimed AMC series “TURN: Washington’s Spies,” the DirectTV original series “Kingdom,” the CBS hit “Scorpion,” and the pilot “Evil Men.” He has directed pilots and key episodes of several dramas, including “Beauty and the Beast,” “Vegas,” “The River,” “Life Unexpected,” “Happy Town,” “Happy Town,” “Life on Mars,” “October Road,” “The Shield,” and “Blind Justice.” Fleder also served as executive producer for “Beauty and the Beast,” the critically acclaimed “Life Unexpected,” “October Road” and “Happy Town.” He collaborated with producer Tom Hanks on an episode of the Emmy® Award winning mini-series “From The Earth To The Moon,” and directed Vincent D’Onofrio in a Peabody Award-winning performance in “The Subway,” a 1996 episode of “Homicide: Life on the Streets.” He first directed for television in 1993, with an award-winning episode of “Tales from the Crypt.”

LAURENCE MARK

Executive Producer
Laurence Mark has produced some of the most widely recognizable films of the last twenty years, including Nora Ephron’s JULIE & JULIA; Bill Condon’s DREAMGIRLS, winner of two Academy Awards® and two Golden Globe Awards, including Best Picture; and Cameron Crowe’s JERRY MAGUIRE, for which Mark received an Academy Award® nomination for Best Picture. Mark executive‐produced James L. Brooks’ AS GOOD AS IT GETS and Mike Nichols’ WORKING GIRL, both Academy Award nominees for Best Picture. Select further credits include LAST VEGAS; I ROBOT; LAST HOLIDAY; THE LOOKOUT, winner of the Independent Spirit Award for Best First Picture; FINDING FORRESTER; ROMY AND MICHELE’S HIGH SCHOOL REUNION; SISTER ACT 2; SIMON BIRCH; and THE BLACK WIDOW.
Mr. Mark recently completed production on FLATLINERS which is directed by Niels Arden Oplev (the Swedish GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO, USA Network’s “Mr. Robot”) and stars Ellen Page, Diego Luna, Nina Dobrev, James Norton and Kiersey Clemons for release next summer by Sony Pictures. Scheduled to go into production in November is THE GREATEST SHOWMAN starring Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron, Michelle Williams, Zendaya and Rebecca Ferguson and directed by Michael Gracey which Mr. Mark is producing for 20th Century Fox for release in December of 2017.
For television, Mr. Mark is an Executive Producer of “When We Rise,” an eight-hour limited series created and written by Dustin Lance Black and starring Guy Pearce, Mary-Louise Parker and Rachel Griffiths that will air next year on ABC.
Mr. Mark garnered an Emmy nomination and a Golden Globe nomination as Executive Producer of “Political Animals,” a limited series created by Greg Berlanti and starring Sigourney Weaver, which aired in 2012 on the USA Network. The show received four Emmy nominations, winning one for Ellen Burstyn as Best Supporting Actress. With Bill Condon, Mark served as producer of the Hugh Jackman-hosted 81st Annual Academy Awards, which earned him an Emmy nomination. The show itself received ten Emmy nominations, a record for this annual telecast, and won four of them.
Before producing, Mark held several key publicity and marketing posts at Paramount Pictures. From there Mark became vice president of production at Paramount and later executive vice president of production at Twentieth Century Fox overseeing films TERMS OF ENDEARMENT, TRADING PLACES, FALLING IN LOVE, THE FLY and BROADCAST NEWS. Laurence Mark Productions is headquartered at Sony Pictures Entertainment, where the company has a long-term production arrangement with Columbia Pictures.

GARDNER STERN

Writer/Executive Producer
Gardner Stern has been a television writer and producer for over twenty years. He has produced and written such shows as “NYPD Blue”, “Law & Order”, “The Practice” and “Las Vegas.” and created the critically acclaimed series “Breaking News.” He has received two Emmy awards, two Peabody awards, two Humanitas awards, a Producers Guild award and a Golden Globe. Stern was raised in Chicago and received degrees from Yale University and the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business. He currently resides in Los Angeles.

TAMARA CHESTNA

Executive Producer
Tamara Chestna is a producer and screenwriter, currently working on numerous television and film projects with USA Network, CBS Films, Lotus Entertainment, Supergravity and Iconoclast, among others. During her previous tenor as Vice President of Development at Laurence Mark Productions, the company released such films as LAST VEGAS, CENTER STAGE: TURN IT UP and JULIE & JULIA. Chestna also served as an Executive Producer on season one of “The Art of More.”

STORYLINES

Ep. 201 – The Pecking Order (Written by Brendan Kelly, Directed by Rob Lieberman)

Haunted by his girlfriend's murder, Graham gets caught in a dangerous FBI manhunt. Brukner plots to turn the tables on his growing enemies. Roxanna makes a risky power play at DeGraaf’s while forging ahead with the fraudulent Swift auction. From his Croatian hideout, Davenport hatches a new art scam.

Ep. 202 – Man On A Rope (Written by Chuck Rose, Directed by Rob Lieberman)

Roxanna clashes with her father as she rises at DeGraaf’s. Graham’s ambition to get back in the auction world lands him in the boxing ring. Using questionable methods, Brukner courts the talented curator Isabel Perry. When Davenport’s latest art conquest goes up in flames, he reaches out to Graham.

Ep. 203 – Hokori (Written by Gardner Stern, Directed by Nathaniel Goodman)

Roxanna’s resolve is tested when her new plans for DeGraaf’s backfire. Graham hustles to meet the demands of working for both Roxanna and the FBI. An old investigation threatens Brukner’s plans for his new museum. Davenport’s financial state forces him back into partnership with Graham.

Ep. 204 – El Calvo (Written by Steven Edell, Directed by Nathaniel Goodman)

Roxanna gets entangled in a government manhunt while her brother-in-law Miles plots against her. After a misstep, Graham ramps up efforts to track fugitive Paul Rice. While dodging a federal investigation, Brukner clashes with Isabel over the museum. Davenport tries to pull Graham into a new con.

Ep. 205 – Better A Lion Than A Sheep (Written by Lane Zola Williamson, Directed by Jeff Renfroe)

Graham’s abduction leads to a confrontation with the very man he’s been hunting. Brukner gets an unexpected visitor just as he and Isabel grow closer. Roxanna reveals a dark family secret. Davenport finds himself in a risky position with a collector. The smuggler Hassan meets a shocking fate.

EXTRAS

ABOUT THE PRODUCTION
Last year, Crackle’s original one-hour drama “The Art of More,” became the first television series set inside New York’s premium auction world, an elite playground where all manner of beautiful, rare and exotic things are bought and sold. Reviewing the show for The New York Times, Neil Genzlinger praised the series and its fast-paced take on an unfamiliar environment: “Turns out that there’s a lot of dirt beneath those slick, snooty events where status is flaunted by the wave of a paddle. …The casting is delicious, the characters and their stories grow more complex with each episode.”
Whichever side of the paddle they occupy, those characters are driven by ambition, passion, greed and, perhaps most of all, the desire to reinvent themselves. Cunning former soldier Graham Connor (Christian Cooke) shakes off his blue collar roots after blackmailing his way into the auction business, but his experience with a smuggling ring in Iraq comes back to haunt him. Indiana-born Sam Brukner (Dennis Quaid) is a bombastic real estate tycoon and self-made billionaire who plans to ride a new image as a public-spirited citizen all the way to the governor’s mansion. The coolly poised Roxanna Whitman (Kate Bosworth) is bent on succeeding her father at the helm of DeGraaf’s auction house, but must contend with a family that insist on viewing her through the lens of her troubled party-girl youth. Arthur Davenport (Cary Elwes) is a prominent collector who enjoys the rather anachronistic lifestyle of a British aristocrat and aspires to be seen as a tastemaker, never mind the fact that the family coffers are dwindling and his treasures include ancient artifacts of very dubious provenance.
Throughout Season One, Graham, Roxanna, Sam and Arthur engaged in a series of power plays, double-crosses, alliances of convenience and the occasional act of kindness. Bad choices begat desperate choices, and things did not end well. Graham renewed a smuggling operation with his former partners which ended in a violent confrontation and his girlfriend Elizabeth being murdered before his eyes. Brukner’s political dreams were dashed and he was publicly humiliated by his pet charity, and with the IRS breathing down his neck and the looming possibility of an FBI inquiry, Davenport fled the country for the relative anonymity and safety of the Croatian coast. Of the four characters, Roxanna came closest to achieving her goal, edging closer to the crown of DeGraaf’s – but at the cost of her hard-won sobriety.
In joining “The Art of More” creative team for Season Two, executive producer/writer Brendan Kelly appreciated the groundwork that had been laid in the series’ first ten episodes and the possibilities it presented for the next ten. “There was so much to explore with the characters, with the art world, with international smuggling and the funding of terrorism in the Middle East. At every turn we found more to dive into,” he remarks.
Veteran producer Mandy Safavi (“Jessica Jones,” the TWILIGHT franchise) also came on board as a consulting producer. “The first season set up a very interesting environment that we’d never seen before,” she comments. “It juxtaposed two realities: the money, power and glamour of high-society auctions in New York; and the shady dealings, lootings, stolen artifacts and terrorism that happen in the auction.” Safavi continues, “It was about the ugliness that lies beneath the glamorous trade in beautiful things. We continue that thread this season, as we look at the dual lives our characters are leading. Each one has a secret and a lie, whether they’re in the art world or its underbelly. We wanted to push them to places that were grittier, more emotional, closer to edge of what’s acceptable.”
Every day, Graham, Roxanna, Brukner and Davenport must calculate the face they present to the world as they chase their goals. In that sense, they are not unlike a fake Van Gogh or a looted Babylonian crown sold with a fraudulent chain of title. “Certainly you could look at our beloved main characters as frauds and forgeries, to a certain extent,” Kelly allows. “There is an element to each of our characters that fools the eye at first glimpse. But upon closer examination, all is not as it seems.”

Closer examination is the crux of Season Two. New layers of the characters are revealed as the series follows their efforts to mend their self-inflicted wounds, keep old secrets at bay and new ones under wraps.

Season Two finds Graham Connor pulled back into the smuggling underworld after he is strong-armed into joining a dangerous FBI sting operation. The target is Paul Rice, well-heeled New Yorker who secretly runs the smuggling arm of a Middle Eastern terrorist group. Graham is tasked with making contact with Rice, ostensibly on behalf of a wealthy collector. “The stakes have gotten higher for Graham,” comments Kelly. “In the first season, Graham was running from his past and his demons. Now he has the death of Elizabeth hanging over him and he can’t run from his past; he has to fight it. He’s looking for revenge, for justice, and he’s looking to piece his life back together.”
Graham returns to the auction business to pursue a deal with Rice, while keeping his FBI role hidden from the other characters. He is again leading a double life, and he’s at a crossroads, says Christian Cooke. “Graham is wrestling with all these demons from his past -- he has PTSD from his service in Iraq, he discovers disturbing things about his family. He’s trying to work out his identity, whether he is a bad guy or a good guy.”
Brukner is also taking stock of his options. Having suffered a rare defeat, he is seeking to reassert his social importance. With characteristic moxie, he decides to open his own museum in a veiled riposte to his detractors. “Brukner had a major public embarrassment when the proceeds from his art auction were refused,” Kelly observes. “It was a real slap in the face to him -- and this is a man who does not take a slap in the face very well. He likes to have the last word. So he’s going to take those millions and spite this world that thinks it’s too good for him by beating them at their own game.”
Brukner remains brash, devious and intimidating when it comes to conducting business and dodging legal trouble. He is less sure-footed with the two women who become part of his life this season: Isabel Perry, a talented curator who shapes his museum as a showcase for outsider art; and Olivia Brukner, his adult daughter from a previous marriage. Both women are more than capable of going toe-to-toe with Brukner, and don’t hesitate to call him out for his behavior. “Isabel and Olivia force Brukner to think about his actions, maybe take a deeper look at himself,” says Quaid. “His whole life is being overturned in a way. He’s not sure who he is any more. But he won’t let anybody know that.”
Roxanna Whitman begins the season in a precarious position, with all eyes on the upcoming Swift auction that could potentially expose her career-making coup. That test of nerves is the first of many that await her over the course of the season. “Roxanna seizes power and finally gets out from under the forces that have kept her down over the years, primarily Miles, her brother-in-law,” says Kelly. “She quickly realizes that the path to getting the crown is often easier than hanging on to the crown. There are many forces aligned against her and she has to battle them off.”
Once she is in charge of DeGraaf’s, Roxanna moves quickly to put her stamp on the company and signal a more adventurous, savvy and modern approach. Her choices aren’t always well-received and one auction in particular causes a public furor. But Roxanna refuses to be cowed, and Kate Bosworth admires her character’s strength. “One of the things I love about Roxanna is that she deals with everything head-on,” the actress remarks. “She’ll take it on the chin if people are upset. She’ll say, ‘yes this is controversial. Controversy creates press, so why not?’ She doesn’t try to duck away even though she’s making choices that are questionable.”
Measured choices hold little appeal for Arthur Davenport, who cannot abide the prospect of being anything other than the wealthy blue-blood he has always been. He’s quite willing to cut ethnical corners in service of his goals and is quick to jump on a juicy opportunity, no matter how ethically bankrupt. “Davenport is a little sneaky,” Cary Elwes acknowledges. “He’s always got something up his sleeve. Even when faced with the biggest dilemma, he’s going to find a way to pull himself out of the muck and get back to where he wants to be. He is very practical that way. And I like that about him.”
To Elwes, part of the delight of “The Art of More” is the fact that Davenport is not an outlier in his methods. “One of the things that I love about this show is that all these characters have secrets and they will hide their secrets and lie about them,” he says. “What’s interesting is that all these characters are dealing in fraud and they also know that about each other. And that’s a bond between them, though they’ll never point the finger or say anything. So there’s that kind of knowing smile between them. None of them are saints.”
Whatever they’re after -- power, redemption, wealth, respect, love, revenge -- the characters of “The Art of More” maybe or may not believe the stories they are telling the world, one another, and themselves. Comments Bosworth, “I think the question for all the characters is, are you faking it ‘til you make it? It’s a great dilemma to play because aren’t we all doing that in some respects? What connects the characters is they’re all trying to create their identities and dig themselves out of the holes they’ve gotten themselves into and rise to the top. They’re a very competitive group. And it’s a very competitive environment that they’re in.”
Adds Kelly, “I think each of them, especially this season, is going through a point where they are trying to discover truths about themselves and they’re finding unexpected answers. At the same time, the game is constantly shifting for them. What was the case on Wednesday may be completely different by Friday. There’s always another truth or another lie around the corner, and the show keeps them coming. And that’s fun.”
Production on Season Two of “The Art of More” began in July 2016 in Montreal. New cast members this season include Sandrine Holt (“Mr. Robot,” “House of Cards”) as Isabel Perry, the curator Brukner chooses to spearhead his museum. Says Kelly, “Sam hires Isabel because he admires her talent, and he admires how she looks, but he doesn’t think much beyond that.  And he finds that Isabel is a very strong, passionate woman, who knows what she wants and is great at getting it. When we first started throwing out casting ideas, Sandrine kept coming up as someone who is very talented and has an amazing presence. She’s poised and graceful but not necessarily as cool as a cucumber. She can bring a passion and a fire, along with a sense of humor. That is exactly what we wanted for Isabel and we felt very excited when she came on board.”
Merritt Patterson (“The Royals”) plays Olivia Brukner, who grew up with her mother in Chicago and saw her father only when he happened to be in town for business. She is not inclined to cut Brukner much slack. “Olivia has a wonderful fierceness; she’s one of the few people who can challenge Sam,” Patterson observes. “She and her father don’t really have a shared past and now she’s spending more time with him than she ever has before. She comes into the season with a wall up and it’s interesting to see their relationship evolve as she slowly lets down those guards.”
Matt Frewer (“Orphan Black”) took on the role of Paul Rice, who was conceived as a master of the benign veneer; a smuggler and terrorist collaborator who looks like any other wealthy, cosmopolitan New York patron of the arts. “We needed an actor who was credible as somebody who travels in high-price art circles and then turn around and convey the menace beneath the façade,” Kelly comments. We knew Matt could convey all the aspects of this character. He’s able to do so much by doing less, and he made Rice truly creepy and chilling.”
In addition to pushing into new character and narrative spaces, the creative team sought to expand the types of art in “The Art of More.” Contemporary art figures prominently in the series, and encompasses work by up-and-coming young artists along with licensed copies of works by Martin Kippenberg and Ed Ruscha, who granted permission to reprint and resize his painting “Burning Gas Station” (1965-1966). Production designer Zoe Sakellaroupolo led her team in fabricating original pieces for the Brukner museum; the centerpiece of the collection, an installation of a mangled, melted car, was designed and fabricated according to the screenplay’s description of a fictional piece.
A realistic depiction of the auction business, circa 2016, was another priority. Series creator/writer Chuck Rose and Mandy Safavi were regularly in contact with close friends at top auction houses on both coasts. The various episodes highlight the different iterations of today’s auction business, both in venue (storage spaces) and origin (seized property). Says Kelly, “We’re excited about portraying the auction world as it exists today. It’s not a bunch of 70 year olds with more money than they know what to do with just buying paintings. It’s everyday items, it’s everyday people buying things from $20 to $20 million. The market for auctions and art is constantly shifting and expanding. With each generation, new people are discovering what excites them.”

Character Descriptions

Primary Characters
Graham Connor (Christian Cooke)

Tough but charismatic, polished in a way that belies his Brooklyn roots, Graham Connor has survived Iraq, family tragedy and his own personal demons as he parlayed his cunning and ambition to climb his way up the ladder of the elite New York auction world. Along the way he continued to leverage his secret life as a smuggler against his more noble passion to create a successful life in the art world. But his double life has left a trail of death and disaster, and Graham now finds himself dealing with a dangerous terrorist, while also hunting for the man who killed his girlfriend. He maintains the hope that he can fight his way through this, and finally escape the prison that he’s created for himself. But the harder Graham tries to escape, the deeper he plunges into a world of danger and betrayal.

Samuel Brukner (Dennis Quaid)

Sam Brukner is a real estate mogul who has risen to the top of the business world with a mixture of charm, cunning and ruthlessness. While he comes across as bombastic and arrogant to the world, he’s also a deeply loyal, passionate man. Which is to say he takes care of his friends almost as well as he takes care of his enemies. Long accustomed to getting his own way, Sam now finds himself captivated by a co-worker who has her own ego and passions. Additionally, he’s forced into a role he’s not entirely comfortable with – father – when his daughter from a previous marriage comes to New York needing his help.

Roxanna Whitman (Kate Bosworth)

A polished, shrewd member of New York’s elite class, Roxanna Whitman is an extraordinarily driven and ambitious account executive at DeGraaf’s, one of the preeminent international auction houses. She uses the status she was born into, as well as her keen ability to find people’s pressure points, to rise quickly within the cutthroat art world. But her drive and her polish mask a set of demons, which have haunted her for years. A victim of abuse as a teenager, Roxanna fell into alcohol addiction for years. Now, as she struggles to maintain her sobriety, she searches for meaningful connections with those around her… including Graham and her family. At the same time, she’s locked in a pitched battle with members of her family for control of DeGraafs.

Arthur Davenport (Cary Elwes)

Arthur Davenport lives the high life of a New York blue blood. Upper East Side townhouse. Expensive vacations in Europe. Endless parties. But the truth is he’s deeply in debt and completely ill-equipped for the harsh realities of the real world. Determined to hold on to his life of privilege, he uses his aristocratic image as the perfect cover to begin a life of crime. Swindling novices into overpaying for works of art, Davenport hopes to climb out of his financial hole. But to be a successful criminal requires more than a suave smile and a posh address. Davenport’s criminal activities will bring him into a world filled with dangers he’s never encountered before.

Olivia Brukner (Merritt Patterson)

Olivia Brukner, is beautiful in that sweet, Mid-western kind of way. Samuel’s daughter from an early marriage, she’s smart and funny, with a dark, dry humor. But beneath that carefree smile, Olivia carries a dark secret and turns up in New York City hoping to reconnect with her father and get his help in putting her life back in order. As a kid, Olivia adored her father, even if she only saw him a few times a year, but it’s hard for her to feel like she’s enough when you’re the estranged daughter of a real estate tycoon and mercurial playboy.

Isabel Perry (Sandrine Holt)

Isabel Perry, is sharp and ambitious, yet a free spirit, who is never afraid to speak her mind. Sophisticated, with zero pretension, Isabel has no problem owning her femininity and her sexuality. She wasn’t born with a silver spoon in her mouth, and has worked very hard in building a successful career in the art world. A gifted curator, with an unparalleled knowledge of art, Isabel is at the top of her game. Her dream is to curate a space for everyone to enjoy and experience art on a personal and visceral level. After a colorful past, she met her husband, Henry, in her senior year of college. Henry was ‘safe’, her best friend, an earnest and social-minded guy paying his way through law school. They got married and 20 years later, they’re still together, but there’s no spark. And Isabel is still fiery and passionate. As Isabel and Brukner get more involved, she will have to learn once again that fire on fire is always a dangerous combination.

CREDITS

Creator/Executive Producer/Writer Chuck Rose

Executive Producer Brendan Kelly

Executive Producer Laurence Mark

Executive Producer Dennis Quaid

Executive Producer Gardner Stern

Executive Producer Tamara Chestna

Consulting Producer Mandy Safavi

Consulting Producer Gary Fleder

Producer Irene Litinsky

Director Rob Lieberman (episodes 1 & 2)

Director Nathaniel Goodman (episodes 3 & 4)

Director Jeff Renfroe (episodes 5 & 6)

Director Sturla Gunnarsson (episodes 7 & 8)

Director Kelly Makin (episodes 9 & 10)

Director of Photography Pierre Jodoin, CSC

Production Designer Zoe Sakellaropoulo

Music Mario Sevigny

Costume Designer Claire Nadon

Casting Josh Einsohn, CSA