Whether you are a film fanatic, a celebrity watcher, somebody who likes to attend or be seen at cool events, or you just want to support your local movie house, the Edmond Town Hall Theatre has got something very special planned for the evening of Wednesday, June 8.

Through a series of connected chance meetings that started in early 2013, Hollywood writer/director Matt Berman, fresh off the Cannes Film Festival, has decided to bring the US premiere of his latest project to the screen right here in Newtown as a benefit to help sustain and improve Edmond Town Hall.

So put on your best red carpet outfit, get your tickets (as none will be sold at the door) and get ready to rub elbows with the stars and enjoy Berman’s The Wedding Pact 2 — The Baby Pact, starring Haylie Duff. Berman is planning to be at the premier along with cast members Duff, Quinton Aaron (The Blind Side), Heather McComb (Ray Donovan), Chase Masterson (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine), Kelly Perine (Knight Squad), Scott Michael Campbell (Shameless), and Executive Producer Michael Gouloff.

For the modest donation of just $12, you can be part of the lights, camera, and action while tickets remain. Reserve them now by clicking HERE — or searching “Baby Pact” at ticketleap.com.

The Baby Pact

The Baby Pact, which was exclusively previewed by The Newtown Bee thanks to a special arrangement with Berman, is a cute, funny, and sweetly engaging film that delivers equal doses of drama and comedy. It is also wonderful in respect to the fact that it can be enjoyed by adults, teens, and even more mature adolescents, because it is completely free of profanity, nudity, or any type of substance use or exploitation.

For those who like strong women leads, The Baby Pact delivers; if courtroom drama is your thing, there is a good dose of that as well; it also showcases fantastic ensemble work among the aforementioned actors along with Connor Trinneer, Gail O’Grady, Kevin Farley, and Richard Riehle.

Duff delivers an excellent performance as she transitions through the emotions brought on by not only her pregnancy, but also the trials and tribulations of a well-played conflict with her late husband’s mom, played by Masterson. It is also a tale of resilience, spiritual connections, love's rediscovery, the magic that can happen among newfound friends, and how well things can go in a bad situation if you just introduce a cheery puppet into the mix.

And the best part of all is, while it is a sequel, viewing Berman’s earlier Duff vehicle The Wedding Pact is not a prerequisite that will impact one’s ability to appreciate The Baby Pact on its own many merits. (However, if you want to, you can easily access the original before the sequel, because it is available for free on Tubi and YouTube.)

The Baby Pact picks up three years after Mitch and Elizabeth (Duff) got married at the end of The Wedding Pact, and much has changed. A month after celebrating Elizabeth’s pregnancy Mitch unexpectedly passes away.

With nothing to keep her in Boston and needing a new start, Elizabeth’s sister Rachel (McComb) arrives to help her pack and move back to their hometown of Ft Wayne, Indiana. In an interview hours ahead of Berman flying off to showcase the film at Cannes, the writer/director explained that Ft Wayne also played an important role in the film because it not only provided some unique location shots, but also part of the crazy formula for getting the film made in the first place.

Check out the June 3 print edition of The Newtown Bee for an exclusive interview with Berman.

The Grenier-Berman Connection

The Baby Pact is actually the second Berman film to be shown at Edmond Town Hall, thanks to the friendship between the film maker and Newtown resident Marianne Grenier, who is helping organize the red carpet festivities.

The story of their friendship came to be through a series of coincidental contacts initially involving Grenier and Saturday Night Live star David Spade and actor Kevin Farley (brother of the late Chris Farley) who she met a few weeks after Spade reached out to try and support the Newtown community in the wake of the 12/14 tragedy.

That relationship led to her reaching out to Berman, who grew up in Branford and had worked with Kevin Farley. That led to Berman inviting Grenier to yet another film screening, and a friendship bloomed. Over the ensuing years, Grenier and Berman connected several more times, the latest for a 2019 screening of his project Manipulated in Newtown — albeit, without all the fanfare and excitement of a national premiere.

"I just want people to know how gracious Matt has been," Grenier said. "He's compassionate, he's sweet, and this event is going to be so much bigger than the one we did in 2019, because he's showing the film at Cannes, and then coming to premier it in Newtown right before it hits theaters for its official release."

Doors open at 5 pm on June 8 for The Baby Pact screening, and a small popcorn is included with the $12 per person donation, as a way for the crew at Edmond Town Hall to say thanks for the support.

For more information about the film, visit www.WP2TheBabyPact.com - follow @theweddingpact2 on Instagram - and view the official trailer by clicking HERE.