Jerry and Marge Go Large is inspired by the remarkable true story of retiree Jerry Selbee, played by Bryan Cranston, who discovers a mathematical loophole in the Massachusetts lottery and, with the help of his wife, Marge played by Annette Bening, wins millions and uses the money to revive their small Michigan town.
The movie was inspired by Jason Fagone’s 2018 Huffington Post article about a real-life couple who legally hacked the lottery to win $26 million dollars. Jerry and Marge, high school sweethearts, lived in a small rural Michigan town where they raised their kids and ran a small convenient store until Jerry turn 62 and they decided to sell the store and retire. One day in 2003 Jerry went into the corner store and saw a new lottery game. In a matter of minutes, he was able to discern a loophole in the lottery game or as he put it in a 60 Minutes interview he “found a special feature” that would allow him to beat the odds. I got lost a little in the math but if you are interested in learning how he was able to use the rolldown to win millions from the Michigan state lottery be sure and watch the full interview. Jerry and Marge did not keep this to themselves, they brought together friends and family to also benefit from the loophole. Michigan was not the only lottery with this loophole. They found that this same Windfall lottery was also in Massachusetts where not only the Selbees but also, a group of MIT students were utilizing the same loophole to make millions. This is such an amazing story and the movie made for a great date night in with my man. Now if we can just find a loophole in the lottery to supplement our retirement that would be great.
In addition to Cranston and Bening, the cast of Jerry and Marge Go Large includes Larry Wilmore, Rainn Wilson, Anna Camp, Ann Harada, Jake McDorman, Michael McKean, and Uly Schlesinger. The movie is rated PG-13, for some language and suggestive references. It is premiering exclusively on Paramount+ on June 17, 2022.
