A biopic about Texas furniture icon Mattress Mack is in the works
A film based on the life of Houston-based businessman Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale is in the works.
Deadline reported Tuesday, Nov. 18 that the film, also titled “Mattress Mack,” cast Billy Magnussen, Dianna Agron, Darby Lee-Stack and Rob Corddry. Shane Andries serves as writer and director on the feature.
The Houston-set film takes place in early 1980s and 2000s and follows McIngvale’s journey to open Gallery Furniture with his wife Linda. It also shows the challenges their family faces when their daughter is diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder.
“A beloved Texas tycoon and retail pioneer who believes that ‘work is life’s greatest therapy’ finds his resolve tested when his youngest daughter is diagnosed with a debilitating mental illness,” the film’s synopsis reads.
The movie filmed across Houston, Conroe and the surrounding areas from early October to early November, according to a casting notice from Michael Druck Casting.
Who is ‘Mattress Mack’?
In 1981, McIngvale opened Gallery Furniture.
A few years after opening, and down to his last $10,000, McIngvale filmed the first of many commercials promoting the store. The ads proved to be a hit, especially his delivery of “Save you money!”
Within about five years, McIngvale pursued an aggressive marketing strategy that called for 600 radio and television spots a week, according to the Houston Chronicle.
Business boomed for McIngvale over the next few decades.
The flagship store remains open, in addition to the Richmond location that opened in 2015. A second Houston store opened in 2009 and closed this year after 16 years of business.
McIngvale is also known for opening his stores to help when natural disasters strike.
In 2017, he kept his stores open 24 hours during Hurricane Harvey. A few years later in 2021, his stores remained open for folks impacted by the deadly winter freeze. He also donated numerous mattresses this year to help Kerr County flood victims.
In addition to his business and philanthropic efforts, McIngvale is a sports bettor, known for his huge wins.
A Houston Astros fanatic, McIngvale bet $10 million on the club to win the World Series in 2022. His bet paid off and won him $75 million, which is believed to be the largest payout in American sports betting history, according to ESPN.
More on ‘Mattress Mack’
Word first broke of a movie on McIngvale’s life in December 2023.
While promoting the film “Lift,” Magnussen told The Backstage Experience’s Dave Morales that a movie about “Mattress Mack” was in the works. Magnussen didn’t give too much away, beyond saying that his production company HappyBad Bungalow is behind it and that the film is a “beautiful” father and daughter story.
Flash forward nearly two years and Magnussen’s company is still behind the movie, in addition to Roosevelt Film Lab and Phiphen Pictures.
No release date has been set for the film.
