Sideways Cast

Paul Giamatti garnered outstanding reviews and commendations (Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Actor, National Board of Review Breakthrough performance of the Year) for his portrayal of Harvey Pekar in Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini's AMERICAN SPLENDOR. more...

Thomas Haden Church is perhaps best known for his role as Lowell Mather on the popular, long-running series "Wings" and as Ned Dorsey in the series "Ned and Stacy." more...

Sandra Oh was recently seen in the hit film UNDER THE TUSCAN SUN, opposite Oscar and Golden Globe nominee Diane Lane, and the film RICK, alongside Bill Pullman. The award-winning actress will soon be seen in upcoming films... more

Virginia Mdsen is perhaps most celebrated for her performances in Francis Ford Coppola’s THE RAINMAKER with Jon Voight, Danny DeVito and Matt Damon, Rob Reiner’s GHOSTS OF THE MISSISSIPPI with Alec Baldwin, Whoopi Goldberg and James Woods, CANDYMAN with Kasi... more

Sideways Film Makers

Alexander Payne made his feature film debut with the critically acclaimed CITIZEN RUTH, a provocative satire about the abortion rights war. He followed that up in 1999 with the much lauded ELECTION, which led the year’s critic’s Top Ten lists, earned Best Director and Best Film Independent Spirit Awards... more

Jim Taylor is the long-time collaborator of writer-director Alexander Payne. In addition to SIDEWAYS, the two have co-authored three previous award-winning and critically acclaimed screenplays: 1996’s CITIZEN RUTH, 1999’s ELECTION; and the 2002’s ABOUT SCHMIDT... more

Based on the Novel by novelist and screenwriter Rex Pickett's novel of the same title (available from St. Martin's Press). Pickett also wrote the short film MY MOTHER DREAMS THE SATAN'S DISCIPLES IN NEW YORK, which won the 2000 Academy Award for Best Live Action Short.

Michael London began work on SIDEWAYS in 1998 after reading the then-unpublished novel of the same name by Rex Pickett. In 1999 the book attracted the attention of Alexander Payne, who had just completed ELECTION, but it would be four years before Payne’s schedule would allow him to begin shooting the project.