Down to Earth (2001) - Synopsis

down to earth - synopsis header

When amateur comedian Lance Barton (Chris Rock) finds himself at Heaven's door, he is convinced there has been a mistake.

Miraculously he is right. Since returning to his own body is not an option, a heavenly agent places him into the corpse of a rich Manhattan mogul who has just been bumped off by his wife -- until a more suitable replacement can be found. Ironically, it is as this strange new person that Lance ultimately discovers his true self, falls in love and improves his comedy act in the process.

Comedian Chris Rock plays Lance Barton in the romantic comedy, "Down to Earth," his first starring role in a feature after establishing himself as one of today's premiere comic performers. With multiple Emmy and Grammy awards for his concerts, CDs, television specials and HBO series, Rock brings a deft comedic touch seen already by millions in previous films such as Lethal Weapon 4 (1998), Nurse Betty (2000) and Dogma (1999)

Paramount Pictures and Village Roadshow Pictures present in association with NPV Entertainment, an Alphaville and 3 Arts Entertainment production, "Down to Earth. " Directed by Chris Weitz & Paul Weitz, and produced by Sean Daniel, Michael Rotenberg and James Jacks, the film stars Chris Rock, Regina King, Mark Addy, Eugene Levy, Frankie Faison, Greg Germann, Jennifer Coolidge and Chazz Palminteri. Chris Rock and Barry M. Berg are the executive producers.

"Down to Earth" is based on the film heaven can Wait (1943) screenplay by Elaine May and Warren Beatty, from a play by Harry Segall. The screenplay for "Down to Earth" is written by Chris Rock & Lance Crouther & Ali LeRoi & Louis C.K.. Paramount Pictures is part of the entertainment operations of Viacom Inc. , which is one of the world's largest entertainment and media companies, and a leader in the production, promotion, and distribution of entertainment, news, sports and music.

Village Roadshow Pictures is the Motion Picture Production division of Village Roadshow Limited, an international entertainment company whose operations also include Cinema Exhibition, Film Distribution, Radio and Theme Parks. Village Roadshow Pictures co-produces ten to twelve titles annually with major studio partners, including Paramount.