The Program (2015 film)

Cast

Development

Screenwriter John Hodge has said that he primarily based his screenplay on Seven Deadly Sins, in addition to other journalism and affidavits from cyclists. Hodge says he ruled out using Armstrong's own accounts of his behavior during this period, and that scenes shown from Armstrong's perspective are fiction.

Casting

Lee Pace joined the cast in November 2013. Dustin Hoffman joined the cast in December 2013.

To better understand his role, Foster took performance enhancing drugs while shooting the film.

Filming

Principal photography began in October 2013.

Box office

The Program grossed $3 million worldwide. It was released for U.S. rental on DirecTV on 19 February 2016, with a theater release date on 18 March 2016.

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rating of 59%, based on 94 reviews, with an average rating of 5.5/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Ben Foster's impressive efforts to channel Lance Armstrong are often enough to power The Program past director Stephen Frears' frustrating unwillingness to delve deeper into its real-life story." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 53 out of 100, based on 20 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".