Daniel Roebuck Hollywood actor and Bethlehem native to make next film in the Lehigh Valley

Hollywood actor and filmmaker Daniel Roebuck will shoot his second feature film in the Lehigh Valley this summer. 

Roebuck, a Bethlehem native, announced plans for the filming of the feature film, “The Hail Mary,” during a press conference at the Roxy Theatre in Northampton on March 10.

The actor, known for his starring roles in the television shows Lost and Matlock, as well as films like “The Fugitive,” “Halloween,” and “The Late Shift,” directed, produced, and acted in his first feature film in the Lehigh Valley, “Getting Grace,” in 2017.

Roebuck hopes to make the Lehigh Valley a center for the film business in America.

“The Lehigh Valley has heart,” Roebuck said, “and it loves art.”

“ “Getting Grace” is on Hulu,” Roebuck said. “25 million people can watch this on Hulu and what are we gonna do? Show them how great the Lehigh Valley is. People are going to want to come to the Lehigh Valley and they are going to want to do business in the Lehigh Valley.”

Bill Hartin, CEO of FIFO, a filmmaker consortium focused on promoting filmmaking in the Lehigh Valley, added that the filming of “The Hail Mary” will have a positive economic impact on our area.  FIFO helps provide Roebuck with crew for his productions, and Hartin has seen the available filmmaking talent grow in the Lehigh Valley in the past several years, he said.

Hartin also explained how films bring revenue to the areas where they are made, by creating jobs and spending money on things like hotels, food, and equipment rentals.

Roebuck, whose films are faith based, has enlisted the sponsorship of area companies like Jaindl farms, St. Luke’s University Health Network, and Embassy bank for the making of this next movie, which will be a production of his nonprofit, A Channel of Peace.

Filming on “The Hail Mary” is expected to begin in July. The film will be released in 2021.