The Luckiest Man in America

The Luckiest Man in America is a 2024 American drama film directed and co-written by Samir Oliveros. It stars Paul Walter Hauser, Walton Goggins, Shamier Anderson, Brian Geraghty, Patti Harrison, Haley Bennett, Damian Young, Lilli Kay, James Wolk, Shaunette Renée Wilson, David Rysdahl, Ricky Russert, David Strathairn, Johnny Knoxville, and Maisie Williams.

The Luckiest Man in America
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Samir Oliveros
Written by	Maggie Briggs Samir Oliveros
Produced by	Amanda Freedman
Starring	Paul Walter Hauser Walton Goggins Shamier Anderson Brian Geraghty Patti Harrison Haley Bennett Damian Young Lilli Kay James Wolk Shaunette Renée Wilson David Rysdahl Ricky Russert David Strathairn Johnny Knoxville Maisie Williams
Cinematography	Pablo Lozano
Edited by	Sebastián Hernández
Music by	John Carroll Kirby
Production companies	Plenty Good Fabula
Distributed by	IFC Films[1] Sapan Studio[1]
Release dates	September 5, 2024 (2024-9-5) (TIFF) April 4, 2025 (2025-4-4) (US)
Running time	90 minutes[2]
Country	United States
Language	English

The film's world premiere was scheduled at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 5, 2024. It is scheduled to be released in the United States on April 4, 2025.

Premise

Depicts the 1984 scandal orchestrated by ice cream truck driver Michael Larson when he appeared on and won the game show Press Your Luck.

Cast

• Paul Walter Hauser as Michael Larson
• Walton Goggins as Peter Tomarken
• David Strathairn as Bill Carruthers
• Maisie Williams as Sylvia
• Shamier Anderson as Chuck
• Brian Geraghty
• Patti Harrison
• Haley Bennett
• Damian Young
• Lilli Kay
• James Wolk
• Shaunette Renée Wilson
• David Rysdahl
• Ricky Russert
• Johnny Knoxville

Production

It was announced in May 2024 that the film, titled Press Your Luck, had entered post-production, with Paul Walter Hauser, Walton Goggins, David Strathairn and Maisie Williams among the cast announced.^[3][4] Later, the film was retitled The Luckiest Man in America.^[2]

Release

The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 5, 2024.^[2][5] That same month, IFC Films and Sapan Studio acquired U.S. distribution rights to the film, planning to theatrically release it sometime in 2025.^[1] It is scheduled to be released in the United States on April 4, 2025.^[6]

Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 65% of 51 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.4/10.^[7] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 63 out of 100, based on eight critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.^[8]