Poland actor lands role in Russell Crowe movie

By Guy D’Astolfo

Jeff Hochendoner of Poland has landed a part in a movie written and directed by Academy Award-winning director Paul Haggis (“Crash”), and starring Russell Crowe and Elizabeth Banks.

Shooting will begin Oct. 17 in Pittsburgh for “The Next Three Days.”

The action film centers around a married couple, played by Crowe and Banks. The wife is falsely imprisoned for murder, and after a series of legal actions fails to free her, the husband and their children decide to break her out.

Hochendoner plays the man in charge of an illegal meth lab. One scene involves Crowe’s character breaking into the lab and mounting a violent confrontation with those inside.

“All of my scenes are with Russell Crowe,” said Hochendoner.

He noted that he read for a smaller part in the film, but Haggis gave him a bigger role.

Hochendoner has had a number of roles in films shot in the Pittsburgh area in the past year.

He is still working on “Unstop-pable,” an action flick starring Denzel Washington and directed by Tony Scott, and recently completed work on “Warrior,” starring Nick Nolte.

Earlier this year, he could be seen in two movies in which he had small roles: “My Bloody Valentine” and “Mysteries of Pittsburgh.”