When producers were scouting for the perfect small town to stage this elaborate hoax, they settled upon Riverside, Iowa (population 928), the self-proclaimed future birthplace of Captain James T. Kirk. Bill and his phony entourage, comprised of a zany cast of characters, descended upon this idyllic small town in rural America early last September and told the townspeople that they were there to film Bill’s passion project, a science fiction film that he wrote 30 years ago with friend and Star Trek co-star Leonard Nimoy.  Then they set about filling some parts in the film with local residents.

Maintaining the hoax wasn’t easy. Bill and the rest of the LA-based cast had to play double duty running lines and filming scenes for their fake Invasion Iowa movie all the while advancing the “plot.”  But the real magic came into play when the townspeople were added into the mix.  How would they react when confronted with the news that Bill’s leading lady is a kleptomaniac, that he’s selling hats called “Shats” which mirror people’s moods, that his assistant is constantly making mistakes, that his spiritual advisor has people sending “love bombs”  to each other, that his “nephew” is virtually uncontrollable, and Max the evil studio executive is ready to shut down the production?   Click here for a video preview.

Since the cast members had to stay in character around the clock for the entire period of the shoot, they o­nly knew each other by their characters’ names. That aided them in building fake histories and relationships with each other and lessened the possibility of their slipping up and calling each other by their real names. Each night the cast and crew met secretly, reviewed what had transpired during that day and made any necessary adjustments to their plan for the next day.  “The hardest part of this whole experience was containing my empathy for the individuals who listened to and identified with the Hollywood dysfunction that we played in front of them,” said Bill.  

While the cast and crew’s actions were roughly scripted over a three and a half month period prior to their arrival in Riverside, and they spent over a week rehearsing various scenarios, the magic that transpired during the 9-day shoot could not be scripted. “I promise you will both laugh and cry” if you watch the program it its entirety said Executive Producer Rhett Reese. 

When it came time to break the news to the townspeople that Invasion Iowa was not Bill’s passion project, that the movie was a cover for the fact that they were filming a reality show spoofing Hollywood, Riverside residents took it well. “The town has been very hospitable and gracious and forgiving,” said Rhett Reese.  Some of the townspeople who played pivotal roles in the project received gifts, and Bill presented the city with a check for $100,000.  The cast and crew were so touched by the townspeople that they took up a collection and donated an additional $12,000 to the Riverside Elementary School Book Fund.

The end product is a very funny and heartwarming film.  Initially, there was some concern that the project might make fun of the people of Riverside, but nothing could be further from the truth.  In some cases, the joke seemed to be o­n Bill and his phony entourage. “This is not a joke that we made to make the people of Iowa look bad,” said Ernie Grunwald.  “We were playing out this ridiculous Hollywood melodrama in front of an audience who happened to be comprised of really wonderful, loving, funny people.  I think the relationship we had with these people really comes through o­n the show.  So, it’s not all farce.  It’s not all silliness.”  Last week, the Riverside Area Community Club screened the first installment of the mini-series and the reaction was very positive. Herb Kane of Criticdoctor.com recently screened the first two episodes of the series with some of the locals cast in the film and has posted their comments o­nline.  Click here to go there directly.

Invasion Iowa was created and executive produced by Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick and William Shatner.  The show premieres o­n March 29th at 9:00pm and runs for four nights, culminating with a 2-hour finale o­n April Fool’s Day.