American Dreamer

American Dreamer is a 2022 American black comedy film directed by Paul Dektor (in his feature debut) and written by Theodore Melfi. Based on a segment from the radio show This American Life, it stars Peter Dinklage as a professor who tries to buy the estate of a lonely widow played by Shirley MacLaine. Matt Dillon, Danny Glover, Kimberly Quinn, and Danny Pudi also star. The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 11, 2022. Premise Dr. Phil Loder, a low-level, adjunct professor of economics at Harvard, has always dreamed of owning a home. His wish becomes a possibility when a lonely widow offers Phil her sprawling estate for pennies. The deal, however, is too good to be true. Cast Peter Dinklage as Dr. Phil Loder Shirley MacLaine as Astrid Fanelli, the widow Matt Dillon as Dell, a real estate agent Danny Glover as a private investigator Kimberly Quinn as Maggie Danny Pudi as Craig, the Dean of Economics at Brockton University Michelle Mylett as a graduate student