James McAvoy's directorial debut, California Schemin', is an impossibly Scottish comedy

A pair of Dundee lads pretend to be American rappers in this true rags-to-riches-to-rags story.

By Kayleigh Donaldson | October 5, 2026 | 9:00am

Photo: Magenta Light Studios

Film Reviews James McAvoy

James McAvoy's directorial debut, California Schemin', is an impossibly Scottish comedy

In the early 2000s, Silibil N’ Brains were gaining traction as the hot new rap duo of the moment. The pair signed with Sony Music, toured with D12, and appeared on MTV. In an era of Eminem and his army of white-boy-rapper descendants, Silibil N’ Brains were close to breaking through to chart-topping success, but in the fickle world of the record business, it wasn’t meant to be. It was probably for the best, because in reality, the allegedly Californian Silibil N’ Brains were Billy Boyd (not that one) and Gavin Bain from Dundee, Scotland, and their lie was in danger of unraveling. Based on Bain’s 2010 memoir California Schemin’: How Two Lads From Scotland Conned The Music Industry (which was later re-printed as Straight Outta Scotland), California Schemin’ tells this story as a familiar but charming rag-to-riches-to-rags comedy, courtesy of first-time filmmaker James McAvoy.

The Glaswegian has decided to keep his directorial debut local, shooting largely in Dundee and hiring rising talent with the appropriate accents (although credit must go to Samuel Bottomley of Bradford, England, for a damn fine copy). The agonizing Scottishness of it all is likely to go over the heads of everyone outside the country, but the scrappy can-do comedy of a too-good-to-be-true story has enough heft to make it appealing to outsiders.

Boyd (Bottomly) and Bain (Séamus McLean Ross) had a dream, but like many a Scot before them, the English stood in the way. Hoping to secure a deal in London, they audition as themselves, only to be openly mocked for being, well, Scottish. “They’re like the rapping Proclaimers,” one toady sneers. “It wasn’t the music they were laughing at,” laments Gavin afterward. “It was us.” Gavin, the more passionate and ambitious of the pair, is the one to make the suggestion that they go American. If the establishment won’t take them seriously as themselves, then what choice do they have?

You can see why McAvoy was drawn to California Schemin’. As a working-class Scottish actor who has made it big, he’s been candid over the years about the “class ceiling” of the British entertainment industry that fetishizes posh Englishness while deriding everything else as “common” or unworthy of investment. You’d be hard-pressed to find a prominent Scot who hasn’t been the subject of at least a handful of snide comments about their accent, upbringing, and penchant for booze (see how the very first comment about Scottish comedian Larry Dean on the premiere of SNL: UK was a joke about him being seemingly illegible to an American).

For Gavin and Billy, their fears are only confirmed when, after going Yankee with a committed but shoddy act that includes the most generic accents possible, learned from episodes of Friends, the industry quickly takes notice. Soon they’re flung into a giddy whirlwind of suck-ups, screaming audiences, and undivided attention. The physical representation of said egomaniacal gatekeeping in the music world? He’s played by James Corden. (No comment.)

Plot-wise, California Schemin’ won’t surprise you. It’s traditional biopic stuff, from the humble beginnings in Dundee, with Billy’s girlfriend, Mary (Lucy Halliday), providing support, to the growing tension between the pair as their fiction spins out of control. Gavin is poisoned by his own fantasy, while Billy is riddled with guilt and dragged back to reality by Mary. The chemistry between the trio is great, making their lived-in, years-long friendship feel natural and worth mourning once things go south.

As for McAvoy, his direction is at its sturdiest when documenting the pair’s rise. He stages some heart-pumping concerts, showing the pair’s undeniable talent that even a nationality rewrite cannot quash. It’s fun to become famous, even if the end results are more stressful than they’re worth, particularly as the scheme starts to fall apart. There’s a lot to pack into this 107-minute film, leaving some moments hurried, but it does give a real sense of the dizzying rush of getting and losing your 15 minutes of fame.

And said fame also turns you into kind of a dick. Silibil N’ Brains’ plans to expose the truth themselves, as a way to expose the music industry’s hypocrisy, is discarded the moment Gavin gets high off his own supply (and some other stuff) and Billy strays from Mary. For a biopic, California Schemin’ is pretty candid when showing its heroes at their worst, both too big for their boots and believing their own lies.

California Schemin’ is pretty bloody Scottish too, even with a chunk of the action taking place beyond the border. Aside from the rare delight of seeing Dundee on-screen, the film portrays a working-class pair and their community with a warm, nonjudgmental touch. It’s not the poverty-stricken miserablism of many a Trainspotting knock-off, nor is it the tartan-infested cringe of Brigadoon. Instead, it’s a secret third thing: funny, self-deprecating, pushing back against bias, and very profane.

The overall message of “just be yourself” might be pat, but for the kids of California Schemin’, it’s a well-earned theme. The most anodyne and identity-free version of Americanness was, for a while, more valuable than the quirks and specificities of their talent. That this film even exists feels like the long-awaited rebuttal to that assumption, and the underdogs finally got their day. Everyone can enjoy that, even if they don’t pick up on every gag.

Director: James McAvoy
Writer: Elaine Gracie, Archie Thomson
Starring: Séamus McLean Ross, Samuel Bottomley, Lucy Halliday, Rebekah Murrell, James McAvoy
Release Date: October 9, 2026

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