Vardalos and Collette play Connie and Carla, two struggling Chicago dinner theater performers who accidentally witness a mafia hit ... and who subsequently hit the road, running for their lives. Assuming the killers will never look for them in a place devoid of culture, the pair head to Los Angeles, where they assume new identities and find their middling talent at song and dance perfectly suited to new careers-as drag queens. Much to their surprise, they inadvertently become the toast of the cabaret circuit. As their ruse becomes increasingly difficult to maintain, they discover that it is indeed lonely at the top, especially after Connie meets Jeff (Duchovny), a guy she'd really like to be a real girl with. With the mafia zeroing in and the line separating their onstage/offstage personas blurring beyond the point of recognition, Connie and Carla soon discover the power of not compromising to pursue your dreams, fighting the good fight, and never, never underestimating the transformative power of cosmetics.
As she did with her debut feature and runaway hit, "My Big Fat Greek Wedding," Vardalos stars in and wrote the screenplay for "Connie and Carla." The highest grossing independent feature film in history, "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" earned Vardalos an impressive list of awards and nominations, including: an Academy Award(R) nomination for Best Original Screenplay; a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy; a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for Outstanding Performance by the Cast of a Theatrical Motion Picture; a Writers Guild Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay; an Independent Spirit Award for Best Debut Performance; and a People's Choice Award for Favorite Comedy Motion Picture.
Toni Collette ("Muriel's Wedding," "The Sixth Sense," "About a Boy") won the Australian equivalent of the Academy Award in 1994 for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role for her comedic tour-de-force performance in "Muriel's Wedding." Collette has since received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress for Spyglass' smash hit "The Sixth Sense," a BAFTA nomination for her role in "About a Boy" and a Tony nomination for Best Actress in a Musical in the Broadway production of "The Wild Party." Her additional feature film credits include "Changing Lanes," "Shaft," "Hotel Splendide," "Velvet Goldmine," "Clockwatchers," "Emma" and "Dinner with Friends."
The ensemble cast of "Connie and Carla" also features the gender bending talents of Stephen Spinella, Alec Mapa, Chris Logan and newcomer Robert Kaiser, as the drag queens who befriend Connie and Carla and ultimately join their act.
The filmmakers have assembled a talented production team for "Connie and Carla," including Oscar(R)-nominated cinematographer Richard Greatrex ("Shakespeare in Love," "A Knight's Tale," "Mrs. Brown"), two-time Academy Award(R)-nominated costume designer Ruth Myers ("L.A. Confidential," "Emma," "The Addams Family"), production designer Jasna Stefanovic ("The Virgin Suicides," "Josie and the Pussycats," the upcoming "Honey"), editor David Finfer ("The Fugitive," "Romy & Michele's High School Reunion," "The Santa Clause 2"), musical director Paul Bogaev ("Chicago") and choreographer Cynthia Onrubia ("Chicago," "Analyze That").
