HACKED: A DOUBLE ENTENDRE OF RAGE-FUELED KARMA Tells the Story of a Filmmaker Scorn – But It’s Funny. We interview filmmaker Shane Brady along with Underoath keyboardist Christopher Dudley.
Filmmaker Shane Brady (BREATHING HAPPY) had a pretty nasty thing happen to him back in 2021 when he and his wife Emily were attempting to buy their first house while the nation was still licking its wounds from the Pandemic: they were swindled out of their $20,000 down payment by a malicious agent. Despite evidence pointing to the culprit, neither the police nor the banks are able to offer any help. In their darkest hour, revenge fantasies formed, so they channeled those burdensome thoughts into the most positive direction they could, thus HACKED: A DOUBLE ENTENDRE OF RAGE-FUELED KARMA was born.
While this sounds like this has all the formative tissue of an Eli Roth orgasm of violence or a new installment in the DEATH WISH franchise, what emerges is a surprisingly joyous and jubilant celebration of neon-soaked fantasies of justice and brutality. Set against the backdrop of a shockingly communal Tampa, Florida, HACKED bounces along with a youthful energy that wins its audience to its side despite its vigilante tone.
Shane plays a version of himself alongside Augie Duke (“Mayans M.C.”) as his screen wife and children (who are fictionalized offspring based on dogs) played by Owen Atlas (LITTLE EVIL) and newcomer Collin Thompson. The villainous hacker The Chameleon is played with madcap aplomb by “The Walking Dead”s Chandler Riggs, who affects a surprise performance lightyears away from the sullen reservation of Carl Grimes. Rounding out the cast are fellow “The Walking Dead” alum Katelyn Nacon, noted character actor Richard Riehle