GANGSTER SQUAD Debuts Official Behind-the-Scenes Stills with Director Commentary

The Ruben Fleischer directed film starring Josh Brolin, Sean Penn and Emma Stone tells the story of charismatic 1940's mobster Mickey Cohen and the Los Angeles police detectives that helped take him down.

Los Angeles, 1949. Ruthless, Brooklyn-born mob king Mickey Cohen (Sean Penn) runs the show in this town, reaping the ill-gotten gains from the drugs, the guns, the prostitutes and—if he has his way—every wire bet placed west of Chicago. And he does it all with the protection of not only his own paid goons, but also the police and the politicians who are under his control. It’s enough to intimidate even the bravest, street-hardened cop…except, perhaps, for the small, secret crew of LAPD outsiders led by Sgt. John O’Mara (Josh Brolin) and Jerry Wooters (Ryan Gosling), who come together to try to tear Cohen’s world apart.

"A police chase ends with a crash through a skylight and directly into this studio during a pinup shoot with Bettie Page (played by Nancy McCrumb)." - director Ruben Fleischer

"In this scene, Ryan Gosling’s character, Jerry Wooters (a cop), introduces himself to Grace Faraday, played by Emma Stone. Obviously they have great chemistry."

"One of my favorite locations: Clifton’s, a real restaurant that’s been in Los Angeles since the thirties. A time warp."

"A turning point for Gosling’s character: A little kid gets killed by Cohen’s assassins in a shoot-out. This is when he decides to get on board—as it says in the script, ‘the long-sleeping cop comes to life."

"It was hard to re-create vintage LA—there are so many tall buildings now. We had to go to the outer reaches of the city, to neighborhoods like Sylmar."

"The full squad: Brolin, Robert Patrick, Anthony Mackie, Michael Pena, Gosling and Giovanni Ribisi. Six amazing actors—and some of the funniest dudes ever assembled."

"Me and Nick Notle, who plays the police cheif, Bill Parker. In the script, he’s likened to Richard the Lionheart. Only Nolte could pull that off."

"This was our very first day of shooting. Josh Brolin plays John O-Mara, a hard-nosed cop headed into the hornet’s nest—mob boss Mickey Cohen’s HQ. He’s trapped in an elevator with two thugs, but he fights his way out."

Gangster Squad is directed by Ruben Fleischer and stars Sean Penn, Ryan Gosling, Josh Brolin, Emma Stone, Michael Peña, Nick Nolte, Anthony Mackie, Mireille Enos, Holt McCallany, Robert Patrick, and Giovanni Ribisi. Warner Bros had originally scheduled the film for release on January 11th, 2013.