The Cast Of Cool Runnings Then And Now

Derice Bannock - THEN

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Derice Bannock is the leader of the Jamaican bobsled team. He wants to follow in the footsteps of his father Ben Baddock and the tall, tall, skinny track & field athlete always dreamed in the Olympics. Because he attempted the trials for the 100m race but failed when he was tripped up by two other sprinters, this inspired him to try out for bobsled.

Leon Robinson - NOW

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Leon Robinson has had a great career, which is not surprising, through his work on "The Temptations" and "The Heartbeats."  He has made numerous movie and tv appearances including "Once Upon a Time .... When We Were Colored" and "Spirit Lost."  The popular actor was praised for his role in "A Day To Die" and proved he is equally proficient in both comedy and serious parts.

Junior Bevil - THEN

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Junior was another Jamaican track & field hopeful. In fact it was Junior who actually tripped and fell during the 100m trials for Olympics and he, in turn, brings down both Yul Brynner and Derice. To make it up to Derice, he decides that he will join the bobsled team. Yul is still angry with him for what happened at the trials but they end up forming a close bond.

Rawle D. Lewis - NOW

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Rawle D Lewis has been a regular Hollywood actor for over 30 years and the Trinidad native extended his acting skills into film production. Since his time on Cool Runnings, Rawle has appeared in movies which include "Spy Hard", "K-PAX" and many others. He has directed tv commercials and currently works as a movie producer, writer and director.

Sanka Coffie - THEN

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Sanka Coffie is Derice's best friend and has a very relaxed Jamaican attitude. He is a six time pushcart champion and understands the thrill of competition. However, he loves to enjoy himself with the help of alcohol! When Sanka is approached to be part of the bobsled team, he does not understand exactly what it is but the idea of winning and appearing on the back of a cereal box seals the deal.

Doug E. Doug - NOW

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Doug E Doug, who played Sanka Coffie, is a talented guy. He has directed movies as well as producing them.  He has even turned to screenwriting which he says gives him a real buzz.  His acting credits include "Operation Dumbo Drop", "Snowmen", "That Darn Cat" and Wyclef Jean in America."  Doug has also voiced in the film "In the Future Love Will Also."

Yul Brynner - THEN

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The fourth and final member of the Jamaican bobsled team is Yul Brynner. He is tall and muscular, and if it had not been for Junior's trip in the Olympic sprint trials which brought him down, he would surely have been selected for the track and field team for Jamaica. He wants to get to the Olympics so agrees to join Derice's bobsled team, with the hope of a gold medal in sight.

Malik Yoba - NOW

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Much like Leon Robinson, Malik Yoba became one of the more prominent and successful actors of the bobsledders in Cool Runnings. After the movie he landed a role in the series "Law & Order."  Yoba was a leading cast member in the police drama "New York Undercover", playing detective J C Williams and was the main actor in "Terror Lake Drive."  You may recognise his voice of Pete in the video game "The Walking Dead: Michonne."

Irving Blitzer - THEN

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Of course, the Cool Runnings team would be absolutely nothing without their washed out, old Olympian coach, Irv Blitzer!  Irv is happy to live out his life relaxing in paradise but when the son of one of his good friend tracks Irv down, asking him to coach the bobsled team, he reluctantly decides to give it a go. Having sprinters join a bobsled team could give them an added advantage of winning.

John Candy - NOW

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Not long after starring in the hit film Cool Runnings, John Candy, who played Irving Blitzer, passed away.  He had been an established and well loved  actor, working on many movies, "Canadian Bacon" being the last one he starred in. Candy suffered a cardiac arrest and passed away at the far too early age of 43.  Luckily, his legacy lives on within the movies he made.

Josef Grool - THEN

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Josef Grool is not backwards in insulting the Jamaicans to their faces but when he notices how determined the bobsled team are, he changes his tune about them. After the crash, he makes sure he congratulates them and tells them he hopes to see them again at the next Olympics!  This scene proved that the bully he could be really had a heart of gold under that hard exterior.

Peter Outerbridge - NOW

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Since Cool Runnings, Peter Outerbridge starred in "Beauty and the Beast."  The Canadian born actor featured in "Nikita" and "Designated Survivor" in recurring roles. He has also voiced in the video game "Far Cry" and regularly narrates documentaries. Many of you will know him more recently from his recurring and scintillating role in "Batwoman."

Kurt Hemphill - THEN

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Kurt Hemphill is Blitzer's former coach and now a judge on the Olympic committee.  Blitzer confronts Hemphill and asks him not to punish the Jamaicans as they had nothing whatsoever to do with his past actions. Thankfully, the team is reinstated with Junior ignoring his dad's attempts to bring him home. He is determined to stay in Calgary to represent Jamaica.

Raymond J Barry - NOW

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Raymond Barry is now in his eighties and one of the oldest of the remaining cast members. Great to hear that Barry is still getting film and tv roles, some of them top movies!  During the last few years he's starred in "The 100", "Gotham", "New Girl", "Shooter", "Ray Donovan" and "13 Reasons Why." His most recent work has been directing and starring in "Filthy Animals."

Whitby Bevil Snr. - THEN

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Whitby Bevil is the father of one of the Jamaican team members, Junior Bevil.  Whitby does not approve of his son's decision to try and take part in the bobsled team.  His reasons are that he thinks it is too dangerous and not a practical sport for a Jamaican.  He does, however, come round to the idea and hopes they can fulfil their wild Olympic dream.

Charles Hyatt - NOW

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Image source: Jamaica Gleaner

Charles Hyatt is not just an actor.  He's a director, writer, author and director.  He enjoys character acting and also being a comedian.  Hyatt received Jamaica's national honor of "Order of Distinction", "The Silver Musgrave Medal" and "The Institute of Jamaica Centenary Medal."  He passed away 16 years ago in 2007 after a long and lustrous full career.

Coolidge - THEN

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When Derice is in Coolidge's office, he spots a photograph of his late father Ben standing right next to another Olympic gold medalist.  Coolidge remarks that the man is the disgraced American bobsled champion called Irving Blitzer. The athlete was disqualified because he cheated at the 1972 Winter Olympics.  He now works as a bookie near to where Derice lives.

Winston Stona - NOW

Image source: Jamaica Observer

Winston Stoma was the Jamaican actor who played Coolidge in Cool Runnings. Previous to this movie, he had appeared in "The Harder They Come", "The Lunatic" and "One Love."  As well as acting he was also a shrewd businessman and was co-founder of the Busha Browne Company. It was said at his death at the age of 82, that he was a wonderful family friend, an amazing storyteller and very charming.

Momma Coffie - THEN

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Momma Coffie is the loving mother who does everything in her power to be supportive of her son and encourage him to pursue his dreams, regardless of any setbacks along the way, of which there are many. Even though she is puzzled when she learns about the sport of bobsleigh and Sanka's wish to take part, she's behind him (not physically!) in his quest for Olympic glory.

Pauline Stone Myrie

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Jamaica Gleaner

Pauline Stone Myrie met her namesake Pauline (Knight) and the two of them were together for many years.  They described each other as soulmates.  Besides the successful 1990s bobsled movie Cool Runnings, Pauline appeared in Dancehall Queen in 1997 which was an independent Jamaican film about a street vendor struggling to cope with her unruly daughter.

Joy Bannock - THEN

 

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Joy Bannock is Derice's mom and leading up to the bobsleigh race, she tries to keep her nerves under control.  She does this by asking her son Derice if he is nervous!  He replies that he's not nervous as he's been waiting for this day the whole of his life and wants it more than anything.  She asks him again and he shouts, "Of course I'm nervous.  I'm terrified.  Stop asking."

Bertina Macauley - NOW

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After Cool Runnings, Bertina Macauley was in the television drama "Royal Palm Estates." It mirrored life on a sugar plantation in Jamaica and was about the lives of the Blackburn family.  It was filled with anticipation, love, murder and, surprisingly, comedy!  Macauley was also in "Glory to Gloriana", Lady Millicent in "It's a Family Affair" and Marjorie in "Going Down."

Roger - THEN

Image source: TV Guide

Roger works as a pushcart derby racer and gives Derice and Sanka useful advice.  They need his expertise in how they can create a bobsled out of a pushcart!  Roger goes into such detail, making mad hand gestures and using technical jargon which does provide some comedy moments.  Roger makes out that it's a complicated engineering procedure to do so.

Paul Coeur - NOW

Image source: TV Guide

Canadian actor Paul Coeur, besides Cool Runnings, is well known for his role in "The High Country."  It was a disaster thriller about a ski resort being threatened by a dormant volcano looking as though it's abut to erupt.  Coeur was also in "Cold Squad" a police tv series which was aired in the late 1990s and early 2000s.  He had a supporting role in this.

Kroychzech

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Jay Brazeau portrayed the character Kroychzech. He was one of the members of the International Olympic Committee known as the IOC.  The movie is very loosely based on a true story where four Jamaicans (all sprinters who failed to make the Olympics due to tripping over and not qualifying) want to make up the first ever Jamaican bobsled team in 1988.

Jay Brazeau - NOW

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Jay Brazeau has been in many film and tv shows such as "Insomnia", "Fifty Shades of Grey" and "The Confirmation." Brazeau appeared in "The X-Files" and "Supernatural." Some of his notable film credits include "Insomnia" (2002), "Fifty Shades of Grey" (2015), and "The Confirmation" (2016). In television, he has appeared in shows like "The X-Files" and "Supernatural."

Composer Hans Zimmer - THEN

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Cool Runnings was a great, feel good movie which was only enhanced by the wonderful musical score which gave it that extra emotional impact and kept us gripped to the storyline. Hans Zimmer was the man responsible and he certainly had lots of experience, having composed multiple scores and earning widespread recognition for his talent including two Oscars.

Hans Zimmer - NOW

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Some of Hans Zimmer's other notable works are music scores for the movies "Gladiator", "The Lion King" and "The Dark Knight Trilogy" along with many, many more.  Zimmer has been described as one of the most respected and influential composers in Hollywood and further afield.  He's actually touring with his guitar this year and next so get your tickets!

Facts About Cool Runnings

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Bet you didn't know that Cool Runnings was originally going to be a drama called "Blue Maaga."  The director wanted it to be a serious sports drama but, thankfully, the format changed and we got the iconic comedy that has stood the test of time.  Another snippet of info - the late Tupac Shakur auditioned and was desperate to be in it but he didn't make the grade.

John Candy Was Desperate For The Movie To Work

Image source: The Guardian

The late John Candy actually took a pay cut because he so badly wanted to play the role of coach Irving Blitzer!  It was reported that he told the cast that he knew they had a big success on their hands. Finally, a sensitive fact.  The four man team in the actual Winter 1988 Olympics unfortunately crashed but in the movie, televised footage was used rather than staged.