California Schemin'
2025 film by James McAvoy
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California Schemin' (stylized as California $chemin') is a 2025 musical biographical film directed by James McAvoy in his directorial debut. The film stars Samuel Bottomley and Séamus McLean Ross as Scottish faux-American rap pairing Silibil N' Brains, Gavin Bain and Billy Boyd, and is based on Bain's 2010 memoir California Schemin': How Two Lads from Scotland Conned the Music Industry.
- Elaine Gracie
- Archie Thomson
by Gavin Bain
- Danny Page
- Paul Aniello
- Simon Kay
- Michael Mendelsohn
| California Schemin' | |
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Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | James McAvoy |
| Written by |
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| Based on | California Schemin': How Two Lads from Scotland Conned the Music Industry by Gavin Bain |
| Produced by |
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| Starring |
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| Cinematography | James Rhodes |
| Edited by | Joe Sawyer |
| Music by | Raffertie |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by |
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Release dates |
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Running time | 107 minutes[1] |
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| Language | English |
California Schemin' premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on 6 September 2025. It was released theatrically in the United Kingdom by StudioCanal on 10 April 2026, and will be released in the United States on 16 October 2026[3].
Plot
The film tells the true story of Silibil N' Brains, a rap duo from Dundee who, for three years, pretended to be American in order to be taken seriously by the record industry.[4]
Cast
- Samuel Bottomley as Billy "Silibil" Boyd
- Séamus McLean Ross as Gavin "Brains" Bain
- James McAvoy as Anthony Reid
- Lucy Halliday as Mary Boyd
- Rebekah Murrell as Tessa
- James Corden as a music executive
- Jennifer Winn as Hayley
Production
James McAvoy was reported to be directing a film about faux-Californian rap duo, Silibil N' Brains, otherwise known as Gavin Bain and Billy Boyd from Dundee in Scotland, in October 2023.[5]
The film is produced by Danny Page of Homefront Productions and Michael Mendelsohn of Patriot Pictures. It is based on Bain's 2010 memoir California Schemin': How Two Lads from Scotland Conned the Music Industry (which was later re-printed as Straight Outta Scotland[6]) and adapted by Elaine Gracie and Archie Thomson. Samuel Bottomley and Séamus McLean Ross were cast to play Boyd and Bain. McAvoy also has a small role in the film.[7] It was funded by Screen Scotland.[6]
Principal photography began on 29 October 2024.[8][9] Filming locations include Dundee and Glasgow.[10][11][12]
Release
Bankside Films handled international pre-sales on the film in September 2024; among the buyers was StudioCanal, which bought the film for the U.K. and Ireland.[13] California Schemin premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on 6 September 2025.[14]
The film was screened at the 20th Rome Film Festival in October 2025.[15] It also received a special screening at the Gasparilla International Film Festival on March 5, 2026, and was also screened at the Glasgow Film Festival on March 8, 2026.[16]
In the United Kingdom, it was released theatrically on 10 April 2026.[17] In March 2026, Magenta Light Studios acquired the U.S. distribution rights.[18] It is scheduled to be released in the United States on 16 October 2026.[19]
Reception
Metacritic review
breakdown (unweighted)
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 96% of 49 critics' reviews are positive. The website's consensus reads: "California Schemin' transcends its predictability with its tonal evolution from playful comedy to poignant drama and central performances that make its underdog journey hard to resist."[20]
Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 63 out of 100, based on 14 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[21]
See also
- The Great Hip Hop Hoax, a 2013 documentary which also told the story of the group
