Jon Bernthal and Ebon Moss-Bachrach are set for a “The Bear” reunion in the Big Apple. Both actors are set to make their respective Broadway debuts in a stage play adaptation of “Dog Day Afternoon.”
Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Stephen Adly Guirgis will adapt Sidney Lumet’s Oscar-winning 1975 film starring Al Pacino and John Cazale. Rupert Goold will direct the production, which is expected to open on Broadway in spring 2026. Bernthal will take on Pacino’s former role of Sonny Amato. Moss-Bachrach is starring as Sal DeSilva, first played by Cazale. Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures confirmed the play to Deadline; the WB group recently brought “Good Night, and Good Luck” with George Clooney to the stage, as well as “The Outsiders,” “Real Women Have Curves,” “The Bridges of Madison County,” and “Elf.”
The synopsis for the “Dog Day Afternoon” play reads: “Step back into the sweltering summer of 1972, New York City — a time when the Vietnam War looms large, Watergate headlines flood the news, and one man’s desperate act captivates the nation. A Brooklyn bank hold up quickly goes wrong, and with each gut-wrenching twist that unfolds, chaos ensues that ignites the city as they follow the actions of a man on the edge. ‘Dog Day Afternoon’ is a raw, gritty reminder of what happens when passion and desperation collide.”
The original 1975 film directed by Sidney Lumet from a script written by Frank Pierson was based on the Life magazine article “The Boys in the Bank” by P. F. Kluge and Thomas Moore. The article chronicled the 1972 robbery and hostage situation led by John Wojtowicz and Salvatore Naturile at a Chase Manhattan branch in Brooklyn.
In addition to roles in “Daredevil: Born Again” and “The Accountant 2,” Bernthal has performed in more than 30 theatrical productions, most recently at the Ojai Theatre Festival where he produced and starred in a production of Pulitzer Prize-Winner Martyna Majok’s “Ironbound” opposite Marin Ireland. Bernthal also recently wrapped production on Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey.”
Moss-Bachrach will next be seen in the latest season of “The Bear” and MCU film “The Fantastic Four: First Steps.” He also previously co-starred alongside Bernthal in “Sharp Stick” and “The Punisher.”