Exclusive: The Laugh Factory is venturing into feature film production with the launch of Laugh Factory Entertainment; their first project being Adam Rifkin’s stoner comedy, Toad, which Deadline first told you about.
The new division will be led by new Laugh Factory President David Fuhrer, Head of Entertainment John Weiser and Laugh Factory founder Jamie Masada who are expanding the iconic brand beyond the comedy clubs into film, television, podcasts, digital content, and live events.
James Paxton
Directed by Rifkin and co-written by the filmmaker with Piers Ashworth, Toad, follows the wild story of two naive slackers, Sam (James Paxton of Twisters) and Alex (Oliver Wyman of Feeling Randy), who are hired by a crime boss to transport a box of contraband psychedelic toads from LA to Vegas. When the desert heat causes the toads to suffer heatstroke, the two are inadvertently dosed when they give the toads CPR...
The new division will be led by new Laugh Factory President David Fuhrer, Head of Entertainment John Weiser and Laugh Factory founder Jamie Masada who are expanding the iconic brand beyond the comedy clubs into film, television, podcasts, digital content, and live events.
James Paxton
Directed by Rifkin and co-written by the filmmaker with Piers Ashworth, Toad, follows the wild story of two naive slackers, Sam (James Paxton of Twisters) and Alex (Oliver Wyman of Feeling Randy), who are hired by a crime boss to transport a box of contraband psychedelic toads from LA to Vegas. When the desert heat causes the toads to suffer heatstroke, the two are inadvertently dosed when they give the toads CPR...
- 9/18/2024
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Filmmaker Adam Rifkin is set to direct his next feature, the stoner comedy, Toad, which he co-wrote with Bank of Dave scribe Piers Ashworth. Cameras will roll this autumn in New Mexico.
James Paxton
In the spirit of such pics like Cheech and Chong’s Up In Smoke, Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure and Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas, Toad tells the tale of two naive slackers, Sam (played by James Paxton of Twisters and Rifkin’s western Last Train to Fortune) and Alex (Oliver Wyman of Feeling Randy), who are hired by a frightening cartel boss to deliver a cardboard box from LA to Vegas for the tidy sum of $10k. The boys think it’s their lucky day. Instructed not to look in the box, the duo can’t contain their curiosity and as soon as they drive off the property they pull over and have a peek.
James Paxton
In the spirit of such pics like Cheech and Chong’s Up In Smoke, Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure and Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas, Toad tells the tale of two naive slackers, Sam (played by James Paxton of Twisters and Rifkin’s western Last Train to Fortune) and Alex (Oliver Wyman of Feeling Randy), who are hired by a frightening cartel boss to deliver a cardboard box from LA to Vegas for the tidy sum of $10k. The boys think it’s their lucky day. Instructed not to look in the box, the duo can’t contain their curiosity and as soon as they drive off the property they pull over and have a peek.
- 7/11/2024
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Jo Hartley and Rory Kinnear are back for Bank Of Dave 2, currently entitled Bank Of Dave: The Sequel. More here.
Released on Netflix early in 2023 was the very British tale, Bank Of Dave. Starring Rory Kinnear and Jo Hartley, it told the real-life story of a man called Dave (you might have guessed that), who set up a community bank to help small, local businesses (you could probably have guessed that too).
Set in Burnley, and with a good dose of Burnley Football Club included, Bank Of Dave was directed by Chris Foggins, and now he’s set to make a follow-up. Entitled Bank Of Dave: The Sequel, Foggins will once again be director, with Rory Kinnear and Jo Hartley reprising their roles.
This time, the foe of the piece will be payday loan companies, an easy to hate villain. New recruit to the ensemble Chrissy Metz will play an...
Released on Netflix early in 2023 was the very British tale, Bank Of Dave. Starring Rory Kinnear and Jo Hartley, it told the real-life story of a man called Dave (you might have guessed that), who set up a community bank to help small, local businesses (you could probably have guessed that too).
Set in Burnley, and with a good dose of Burnley Football Club included, Bank Of Dave was directed by Chris Foggins, and now he’s set to make a follow-up. Entitled Bank Of Dave: The Sequel, Foggins will once again be director, with Rory Kinnear and Jo Hartley reprising their roles.
This time, the foe of the piece will be payday loan companies, an easy to hate villain. New recruit to the ensemble Chrissy Metz will play an...
- 2/27/2024
- by Simon Brew
- Film Stories
Exclusive: This Is Us lead Chrissy Metz has joined the cast of Bank of Dave: The Sequel, director Chris Foggins’ follow-up to his 2023 British feel-good comedy Bank of Dave, based on a true story.
Among those confirmed to return for the sequel, from the same creative team, are Rory Kinnear and Jo Hartley. Stay tuned for further castings to be announced imminently.
Hitting North American theaters last year via Samuel Goldwyn Films, Bank of Dave is inspired by the true story of Dave Fishwick (Kinnear), a self-made millionaire from the British town of Burnley. Pic chronicles the myriad challenges he faces in setting out to establish a community bank, with an eye toward bolstering small local businesses.
Picking up two years later, the sequel finds Dave taking on an even more dangerous and formidable opponent than the big banks — Payday Loan Companies. After recruiting Jessica (Metz), an American investigative reporter,...
Among those confirmed to return for the sequel, from the same creative team, are Rory Kinnear and Jo Hartley. Stay tuned for further castings to be announced imminently.
Hitting North American theaters last year via Samuel Goldwyn Films, Bank of Dave is inspired by the true story of Dave Fishwick (Kinnear), a self-made millionaire from the British town of Burnley. Pic chronicles the myriad challenges he faces in setting out to establish a community bank, with an eye toward bolstering small local businesses.
Picking up two years later, the sequel finds Dave taking on an even more dangerous and formidable opponent than the big banks — Payday Loan Companies. After recruiting Jessica (Metz), an American investigative reporter,...
- 2/26/2024
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Samuel Goldwyn Films has locked down North American rights to the British feel-good comedy Bank of Dave, starring Joel Fry (Our Flag Means Death), Rory Kinnear (Men), Jo Hartley (After Life) and Phoebe Dynevor (Bridgerton). The film featuring music and performances by English rock band Def Leppard is slated for release in theaters and on digital platforms later this year.
Telling the true story of how a working-class man and self-made millionaire fought to set up a community bank, Bank of Dave follows Dave Fishwick (Kinnear), who sells vans in Burnley, Lancashire. Once the world’s most productive and profitable mill town, Burnley is now one of the most deprived and neglected towns in the UK. Dave, however, through a combination of hustle and hard work, has done well for himself — so well that in the wake of the last financial crisis, he started lending money at reduced rates...
Telling the true story of how a working-class man and self-made millionaire fought to set up a community bank, Bank of Dave follows Dave Fishwick (Kinnear), who sells vans in Burnley, Lancashire. Once the world’s most productive and profitable mill town, Burnley is now one of the most deprived and neglected towns in the UK. Dave, however, through a combination of hustle and hard work, has done well for himself — so well that in the wake of the last financial crisis, he started lending money at reduced rates...
- 4/13/2023
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
(l-r) Hero Fiennes Tiffin and Max Harwood in The Loneliest Boy In The World. Courtesy of WellGo USA
If you want to get in on the ground floor of a future cult favorite, the little horror comedy The Loneliest Boy In The World may be your latest ticket. The eponymous lad, Oliver (Max Harwood) was an introverted mama’s boy while she was alive, who we find even more isolated after she’d died in a bizarre accident that traumatized him enough for a stretch in a psych ward. Now he’s trying to live alone in their house, pressured by social workers to prove he can survive that way by making some friends. Quickly. That’s a tough challenge, since he spends most of his time in the cemetery talking to his mom’s grave, or watching the TV shows they used to share. No one else cares about him,...
If you want to get in on the ground floor of a future cult favorite, the little horror comedy The Loneliest Boy In The World may be your latest ticket. The eponymous lad, Oliver (Max Harwood) was an introverted mama’s boy while she was alive, who we find even more isolated after she’d died in a bizarre accident that traumatized him enough for a stretch in a psych ward. Now he’s trying to live alone in their house, pressured by social workers to prove he can survive that way by making some friends. Quickly. That’s a tough challenge, since he spends most of his time in the cemetery talking to his mom’s grave, or watching the TV shows they used to share. No one else cares about him,...
- 10/14/2022
- by Mark Glass
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
The tedious zombie comedy “The Loneliest Boy in the World” joins a number of recent faux-retro satires that — like “Psycho Goreman” (2020), “Turbo Kid” (2015), and “Kung Fury” (2015) before it — re-present pop culture artifacts from the 1980s as knowingly kitschy comfort food.
In “The Loneliest Boy in the World,” an emotionally disturbed orphan digs up and befriends a quartet of mysteriously re-animated corpses, who then inexplicably act like his surrogate family members. The kid, Oliver, has no friends and no social intelligence, because he’s addicted to TV. Oliver also lives alone in a pink house whose interior design seems to have been partly inspired by Barbie’s Dreamhouse playset.
Unfortunately, director Martin Owen (“The Intergalactic Adventures of Max Cloud”) and screenwriter Piers Ashworth (co-writer of “Blithe Spirit”) don’t challenge or really highlight anything funny about Oliver’s delusional, media-poisoned nostalgia. The gags in “The Loneliest Boy in the World” also...
In “The Loneliest Boy in the World,” an emotionally disturbed orphan digs up and befriends a quartet of mysteriously re-animated corpses, who then inexplicably act like his surrogate family members. The kid, Oliver, has no friends and no social intelligence, because he’s addicted to TV. Oliver also lives alone in a pink house whose interior design seems to have been partly inspired by Barbie’s Dreamhouse playset.
Unfortunately, director Martin Owen (“The Intergalactic Adventures of Max Cloud”) and screenwriter Piers Ashworth (co-writer of “Blithe Spirit”) don’t challenge or really highlight anything funny about Oliver’s delusional, media-poisoned nostalgia. The gags in “The Loneliest Boy in the World” also...
- 10/10/2022
- by Simon Abrams
- The Wrap
The Loneliest Boy in the World Trailer — Martin Owen‘s The Loneliest Boy in the World (2022) movie trailer has been released by Well Go USA Entertainment. The Loneliest Boy in the World trailer stars Max Harwood, Hero Fiennes Tiffin, Susan Wokoma, Evan Ross, Ben Miller, Ashley Benson, and Jacob Sartorious. Crew Piers Ashworth wrote the [...]
Continue reading: The Loneliest Boy In The World (2022) Movie Trailer: Martin Owen’s Modern Fairy-tale with Zombies...
Continue reading: The Loneliest Boy In The World (2022) Movie Trailer: Martin Owen’s Modern Fairy-tale with Zombies...
- 9/21/2022
- by Rollo Tomasi
- Film-Book
A delightful, poignant, and flat-out fun coming-of-age horror comedy that had its world premiere at this year's Popcorn Frights Film Festival, The Loneliest Boy in the World will be released in limited theaters on October 14th (followed by an October 18th VOD release) by Well Go USA Entertainment, and the official trailer has now been unveiled to give you an idea of what to expect!
Directed by Martin Owen from a screenplay by Piers Ashworth, The Loneliest Boy in the World stars Max Harwood, Hero Fiennes Tiffin, Susan Wokoma, Evan Ross, Tallulah Haddon, Hammed Animashaun, Jacob Sartorius, Ben Miller, Alex Murphy, Nicola Roberts, and Ashley Benson.
Synopsis: "The Loneliest Boy In The World is billed as a modern fairytale—except with zombies. When the sheltered and unsocialized Oliver (Harwood) is tasked with making new friends after the sudden and devastating death of his mother, he decides that digging a few...
Directed by Martin Owen from a screenplay by Piers Ashworth, The Loneliest Boy in the World stars Max Harwood, Hero Fiennes Tiffin, Susan Wokoma, Evan Ross, Tallulah Haddon, Hammed Animashaun, Jacob Sartorius, Ben Miller, Alex Murphy, Nicola Roberts, and Ashley Benson.
Synopsis: "The Loneliest Boy In The World is billed as a modern fairytale—except with zombies. When the sheltered and unsocialized Oliver (Harwood) is tasked with making new friends after the sudden and devastating death of his mother, he decides that digging a few...
- 9/21/2022
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
Well Go USA Entertainment will be giving the zombie horror comedy The Loneliest Boy in the World a limited theatrical release on October 14th, and in anticipation of that date a trailer for the film has arrived online. You can check it out in the embed above.
Directed by Martin Owen (Let’s Be Evil) from a screenplay by Piers Ashworth (St Trinian’s 2: The Legend of Fritton’s Gold), The Loneliest Boy in the World is described as being “a satire and a celebration of family values, of the imagery of horror films, of suburban life, of the American Dream and of the ultimate taboo; death.” The film is
billed as a modern fairytale—except with zombies. When the sheltered and unsocialized Oliver (Harwood) is tasked with making new friends after the sudden and devastating death of his mother, he decides that digging a few up (literally) might be his best bet.
Directed by Martin Owen (Let’s Be Evil) from a screenplay by Piers Ashworth (St Trinian’s 2: The Legend of Fritton’s Gold), The Loneliest Boy in the World is described as being “a satire and a celebration of family values, of the imagery of horror films, of suburban life, of the American Dream and of the ultimate taboo; death.” The film is
billed as a modern fairytale—except with zombies. When the sheltered and unsocialized Oliver (Harwood) is tasked with making new friends after the sudden and devastating death of his mother, he decides that digging a few up (literally) might be his best bet.
- 9/20/2022
- by Cody Hamman
- JoBlo.com
One of my favorite films at this year's Popcorn Frights Film Festival was The Loneliest Boy in the World, so I'm especially excited that the creepily quirky coming-of-age film has found a North American distribution home at Well Go USA Entertainment and will be heading to theaters on October 14th, followed by a VOD release on October 18th:
Press Release: Plano, Texas – Leading international and indie film distributor Well Go USA Entertainment has acquired North American rights to coming-of-age horror comedy The Loneliest Boy In The World. The film—as sweet and endearing as it is darkly satiric—is led by an all-star cast that includes Screen International “Star of Tomorrow” Max Harwood, Hero Fiennes Tiffin, Susan Wokoma, Evan Ross, Tallulah Haddon, Hammed Animashaun, Jacob Sartorius, Ben Miller, Alex Murphy, Nicola Roberts and Ashley Benson. The film will be released in theaters on October 14 before landing on VOD platforms October...
Press Release: Plano, Texas – Leading international and indie film distributor Well Go USA Entertainment has acquired North American rights to coming-of-age horror comedy The Loneliest Boy In The World. The film—as sweet and endearing as it is darkly satiric—is led by an all-star cast that includes Screen International “Star of Tomorrow” Max Harwood, Hero Fiennes Tiffin, Susan Wokoma, Evan Ross, Tallulah Haddon, Hammed Animashaun, Jacob Sartorius, Ben Miller, Alex Murphy, Nicola Roberts and Ashley Benson. The film will be released in theaters on October 14 before landing on VOD platforms October...
- 8/31/2022
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
Well Go USA Entertainment has acquired North American rights to the coming-of-age horror-comedy The Loneliest Boy in the World, starring Max Harwood (Everybody’s Talking About Jamie), Deadline reports.
The Loneliest Boy in the World is billed as a modern fairytale — except with zombies.
“When the sheltered and unsocialized Oliver (Harwood) is tasked with making new friends after the sudden and devastating death of his mother, he decides that digging a few up (literally) might be his best bet. However, when he awakens the morning after his excavating escapades, he discovers that his newly acquired friends have mysteriously come to life overnight, launching them all into a series of misadventures as they try to keep their secret safe from neighbors, classmates and social workers alike.”
The film from director Martin Owen also stars Hero Fiennes Tiffin (The Woman King), Susan Wokoma (Enola Holmes films), Evan Ross (The United States vs. Billie Holiday...
The Loneliest Boy in the World is billed as a modern fairytale — except with zombies.
“When the sheltered and unsocialized Oliver (Harwood) is tasked with making new friends after the sudden and devastating death of his mother, he decides that digging a few up (literally) might be his best bet. However, when he awakens the morning after his excavating escapades, he discovers that his newly acquired friends have mysteriously come to life overnight, launching them all into a series of misadventures as they try to keep their secret safe from neighbors, classmates and social workers alike.”
The film from director Martin Owen also stars Hero Fiennes Tiffin (The Woman King), Susan Wokoma (Enola Holmes films), Evan Ross (The United States vs. Billie Holiday...
- 8/30/2022
- by Brad Miska
- bloody-disgusting.com
Exclusive: Well Go USA Entertainment has acquired North American rights to the coming-of-age horror-comedy The Loneliest Boy in the World, starring Max Harwood (Everybody’s Talking About Jamie). The international and indie distributor has slated the film for release in theaters on October 14, with plans to unveil it across VOD platforms on the 18th.
The Loneliest Boy in the World is billed as a modern fairytale — except with zombies. When the sheltered and unsocialized Oliver (Harwood) is tasked with making new friends after the sudden and devastating death of his mother, he decides that digging a few up (literally) might be his best bet. However, when he awakens the morning after his excavating escapades, he discovers that his newly acquired friends have mysteriously come to life overnight, launching them all into a series of misadventures as they try to keep their secret safe from neighbors, classmates and social workers alike.
The...
The Loneliest Boy in the World is billed as a modern fairytale — except with zombies. When the sheltered and unsocialized Oliver (Harwood) is tasked with making new friends after the sudden and devastating death of his mother, he decides that digging a few up (literally) might be his best bet. However, when he awakens the morning after his excavating escapades, he discovers that his newly acquired friends have mysteriously come to life overnight, launching them all into a series of misadventures as they try to keep their secret safe from neighbors, classmates and social workers alike.
The...
- 8/30/2022
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
‘Orphan: First Kill’, ‘Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’ also out.
Entertainment Film Distributors’ seafaring sequel Fisherman’s Friends: One And All receives the widest opening of any title at the UK-Ireland box office this weekend, starting in 645 locations.
Directed by Meg Leonard and Nick Moorcroft, One And All is a sequel to Chris Foggin’s Fisherman’s Friends, about 10 Cornish fisherman who gain a record deal with their album of sea shanties.
The sequel sees the group struggle with their second album after the highs of performing on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury.
Fisherman’s Friends opened to £1.2m from 506 locations in March...
Entertainment Film Distributors’ seafaring sequel Fisherman’s Friends: One And All receives the widest opening of any title at the UK-Ireland box office this weekend, starting in 645 locations.
Directed by Meg Leonard and Nick Moorcroft, One And All is a sequel to Chris Foggin’s Fisherman’s Friends, about 10 Cornish fisherman who gain a record deal with their album of sea shanties.
The sequel sees the group struggle with their second album after the highs of performing on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury.
Fisherman’s Friends opened to £1.2m from 506 locations in March...
- 8/19/2022
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
The Tim Burtonesque depiction of suburbia, full of quirky characters and pastel colors, signals a very different type of horror movie in The Loneliest Boy in the World. One freak accident further isolates the timid and lonely Oliver (Max Harwood), sparking a desperate quest for friendship. He finds it in death, creating a sweet coming-of-age fairy tale in the vein of 2006 zombie-comedy Fido.
Oliver lives a reclusive life in the suburbs with his mother. He never ventures much outside the home, finding companionship through her and his beloved sitcom Alf. That changes when a wild series of events leaves mom dead, impaled on a garden gnome, and Oliver at the mercy of a social worker, Margot (Ashley Benson). The social worker is concerned with Oliver’s isolation and mental well-being, giving him a finite timeline to find friends before she intervenes. He takes her words to heart and unearths the recently buried,...
Oliver lives a reclusive life in the suburbs with his mother. He never ventures much outside the home, finding companionship through her and his beloved sitcom Alf. That changes when a wild series of events leaves mom dead, impaled on a garden gnome, and Oliver at the mercy of a social worker, Margot (Ashley Benson). The social worker is concerned with Oliver’s isolation and mental well-being, giving him a finite timeline to find friends before she intervenes. He takes her words to heart and unearths the recently buried,...
- 8/18/2022
- by Meagan Navarro
- bloody-disgusting.com
Exclusive: Even before the pandemic, the foreign sales market became mired down with some risky bets, i.e. the over exorbitant Roland Emmerich sci-fi disaster title Moonfall which carried a 140M production cost (resulting in a 44.3M WW gross), and Simon Kinberg’s femme spy ensemble The 355 at a 75M cost (which grossed just under 28M WW).
But there’s arguably a safer way to make moolah in the foreign sales sphere and that’s off of YA feature adaptations.
True, it’s been a while since the grand slam days of Lionsgate’s Hunger Games series and Summit International’s Twilight franchise, however, these movies can be made off a low cost yielding singles, doubles, or even home runs at the box office. Or worst case scenario, be in the black simply off their sales to streamers. And if a movie strikes out, it doesn’t sting so...
But there’s arguably a safer way to make moolah in the foreign sales sphere and that’s off of YA feature adaptations.
True, it’s been a while since the grand slam days of Lionsgate’s Hunger Games series and Summit International’s Twilight franchise, however, these movies can be made off a low cost yielding singles, doubles, or even home runs at the box office. Or worst case scenario, be in the black simply off their sales to streamers. And if a movie strikes out, it doesn’t sting so...
- 5/16/2022
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Game of Thrones and Cruella star Joel Fry, Bridgerton‘s Phoebe Dynevor and No Time to Die and 007 franchise star Rory Kinnear are set to star in the romantic comedy The Bank of Dave written by Piers Ashworth and directed by Chris Foggin.
Based on the true-life experiences of Dave Fishwick; The Bank of Dave tells the story of how a working class Burnley man and self-made millionaire fought to set up a community bank so that he could help the local businesses of Burnley not only survive, but thrive. In his bid to help his beloved community of Burnley he has to take on the elitist financial institutions of London and fight to receive the first, new banking license to be issued in over 100 years.
Fry plays young London lawyer Hugh who is hired by Dave to fight his case against the British banking system.
Based on the true-life experiences of Dave Fishwick; The Bank of Dave tells the story of how a working class Burnley man and self-made millionaire fought to set up a community bank so that he could help the local businesses of Burnley not only survive, but thrive. In his bid to help his beloved community of Burnley he has to take on the elitist financial institutions of London and fight to receive the first, new banking license to be issued in over 100 years.
Fry plays young London lawyer Hugh who is hired by Dave to fight his case against the British banking system.
- 2/10/2022
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
James Purefoy, Dave Johns are back; Daniel Mays, Tuppence Middleton, Noel Clarke not.
Principal photography is underway in Cornwall on Fisherman’s Friends 2, the sequel to the 2019 box office hit about a sea shanty singing group, with several of the cast from the first film confirmed to return.
James Purefoy is back in the role of Jim, with Maggie Steed, Dave Johns, Sam Swainsbury, Jade Anouka and David Hayman also reprising their parts. New cast members include Richard Harrington as new band member Morgan, Ramon Tikaram, Joshua Maguire, and Irish singer-songwriter Imelda May in her debut acting role.
Daniel Mays,...
Principal photography is underway in Cornwall on Fisherman’s Friends 2, the sequel to the 2019 box office hit about a sea shanty singing group, with several of the cast from the first film confirmed to return.
James Purefoy is back in the role of Jim, with Maggie Steed, Dave Johns, Sam Swainsbury, Jade Anouka and David Hayman also reprising their parts. New cast members include Richard Harrington as new band member Morgan, Ramon Tikaram, Joshua Maguire, and Irish singer-songwriter Imelda May in her debut acting role.
Daniel Mays,...
- 4/15/2021
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Moscow International Film Festival Unveils Plan
The Moscow International Film Festival is set to run as a physical event in the Russian capital from April 22 to 29, making it one of the first international film festivals to take place in physical form this year. The event will run on site for the Russian public and virtually for international delegates. Brillante Mendoza will chair the main competition jury and the festival will open with Timur Bekmambetov-directed war biopic Devyataev. Films in the main lineup include Iranian drama The Son, Japanese title The Women, comedy Bloodsuckers – A Marxist Vampire Comedy, and Italian film The Time Of Indifference. In other Euro festival news, the Monte-Carlo Television Festival announced today that it is planning to host its 60th edition in person at the end of June.
‘Fisherman’s Friends 2’ Underway
Fisherman’s Friends 2, the sequel to the 2019 indie pic that was a box office hit in the UK,...
The Moscow International Film Festival is set to run as a physical event in the Russian capital from April 22 to 29, making it one of the first international film festivals to take place in physical form this year. The event will run on site for the Russian public and virtually for international delegates. Brillante Mendoza will chair the main competition jury and the festival will open with Timur Bekmambetov-directed war biopic Devyataev. Films in the main lineup include Iranian drama The Son, Japanese title The Women, comedy Bloodsuckers – A Marxist Vampire Comedy, and Italian film The Time Of Indifference. In other Euro festival news, the Monte-Carlo Television Festival announced today that it is planning to host its 60th edition in person at the end of June.
‘Fisherman’s Friends 2’ Underway
Fisherman’s Friends 2, the sequel to the 2019 indie pic that was a box office hit in the UK,...
- 4/15/2021
- by Andreas Wiseman, Tom Grater and Jake Kanter
- Deadline Film + TV
First, the good stuff: casting comedic gems like Dan Stevens, Isla Fisher, and Leslie Mann in a screwball Noel Coward adaptation is an inspired idea. Now this is a trio of game performers who always seem keenly aware of what sort of film they’re in and how to best elevate it. The problem, of course, is how to elevate a film that happens to be, well, just sort of bad. Edward Hall’s “Blithe Spirit” isn’t terribly ill-conceived, a slightly modernized version of the classic Noel Coward play — which has already been adapted for the screen by everyone from David Lean to Coward himself — with a wonderful cast and dazzling period details, that still manages to fall short of even limited expectations.
Based on Coward’s still-popular 1941 stage play, this “Blithe Spirit” has been the victim of an awkward update from screenwriters Piers Ashworth and Nick Moorcroft, who...
Based on Coward’s still-popular 1941 stage play, this “Blithe Spirit” has been the victim of an awkward update from screenwriters Piers Ashworth and Nick Moorcroft, who...
- 2/19/2021
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
Charles Condomine (Dan Stevens) is plagued by writer’s block—so much so that his wife Ruth (Isla Fisher) talked her film producer father (Simon Kunz’s Henry Mackintosh) into paying him to adapt his best-selling detective novel debut into a screenplay. The hope is that an easy task without the need for new ideas will get the creative (and sexual) juices flowing again so that they can push their beds together and maybe even cross the Atlantic to Hollywood. No matter how supportive Ruth has been, however, Charles still can’t muster more than an all-caps “Help” upon the page before losing himself to another temper tantrum. If only his muse was by his side: the first Mrs. Condomine (Leslie Mann’s Elvira), who tragically died seven years prior.
C’est la vie, right? They’ll just have to push through instead: Charles banging his head against his typewriter...
C’est la vie, right? They’ll just have to push through instead: Charles banging his head against his typewriter...
- 2/18/2021
- by Jared Mobarak
- The Film Stage
The Writers Guild of America Awards announced their nominations where big boosts were given to films like “Judas and the Black Messiah” from Shaka King, “Palm Springs” from Max Barbakow and “The White Tiger” from Ramin Bahrani.
Missing from the lineup, that was eligible, are “Never Rarely Sometimes Always” in the original screenplay category and “First Cow” and “I’m Thinking of Ending Things” in the adapted.
The full list of nominations is below:
Original Screenplay
“Judas and the Black Messiah” (Warner Bros) – Screenplay by Will Berson & Shaka King, Story by Will Berson & Shaka King and Kenny Lucas & Keith Lucas “Palm Springs” (Hulu/Neon) – Screenplay by Andy Siara, Story by Andy Siara & Max Barbakow “Promising Young Woman” (Focus Features) – Written by Emerald Fennell “Sound of Metal” (Amazon Studios) – Screenplay by Darius Marder & Abraham Marder, Story by Darius Marder & Derek Cianfrance “The Trial of the Chicago 7” (Netflix) – Written by Aaron Sorkin...
Missing from the lineup, that was eligible, are “Never Rarely Sometimes Always” in the original screenplay category and “First Cow” and “I’m Thinking of Ending Things” in the adapted.
The full list of nominations is below:
Original Screenplay
“Judas and the Black Messiah” (Warner Bros) – Screenplay by Will Berson & Shaka King, Story by Will Berson & Shaka King and Kenny Lucas & Keith Lucas “Palm Springs” (Hulu/Neon) – Screenplay by Andy Siara, Story by Andy Siara & Max Barbakow “Promising Young Woman” (Focus Features) – Written by Emerald Fennell “Sound of Metal” (Amazon Studios) – Screenplay by Darius Marder & Abraham Marder, Story by Darius Marder & Derek Cianfrance “The Trial of the Chicago 7” (Netflix) – Written by Aaron Sorkin...
- 2/16/2021
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
The drama is an Fae production for Sky Cinema.
Jonathan Pryce, Samantha Morton and Tom Felton will star in Save The Cinema, a feature drama about the campaign to save a local cinema in Carmarthen, Wales in the 1990s, which is now shooting in Wales.
The film is directed by Sara Sugarman, whose previous features includes Mad Cows (1999), Very Annie Mary (2001), Confessions Of A Teenage Drama Queen (2004) and Vinyl (2012).
The film is co-produced by Sky and Fae Film & Television. Sky has majority-financed the title as a Sky Original film, with additional backing from Phil Hunt’s Head Gear Films, Film Cymru and Lipsync.
Jonathan Pryce, Samantha Morton and Tom Felton will star in Save The Cinema, a feature drama about the campaign to save a local cinema in Carmarthen, Wales in the 1990s, which is now shooting in Wales.
The film is directed by Sara Sugarman, whose previous features includes Mad Cows (1999), Very Annie Mary (2001), Confessions Of A Teenage Drama Queen (2004) and Vinyl (2012).
The film is co-produced by Sky and Fae Film & Television. Sky has majority-financed the title as a Sky Original film, with additional backing from Phil Hunt’s Head Gear Films, Film Cymru and Lipsync.
- 1/22/2021
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
“You’ve been commissioned to write a 90-page screenplay, not ‘War and Peace.'” With these airy words, in the opening minutes of “Blithe Spirit,” exasperated trophy wife Ruth (Isla Fisher) admonishes her first-time screenwriter husband Charles (Dan Stevens) as he twitchily battles writers’ block. Then she adds a kicker: “How can it be so difficult to adapt a story you’ve already written?” If her frustration with the whiny, self-absorbed Charles is hardly misplaced, her assumptions about screenwriting are nonetheless off-base. Penning a good, short, pithy screenplay is no easy feat, even when working from solidly proven source material — and one need look no further than “Blithe Spirit,” a tin-eared, lumpen-footed, almost perversely unfunny new spin on Noël Coward’s breezy 1940s farce, for proof.
Sputtering onto screens 75 years after David Lean’s original adaptation, TV director Edward Hall’s debut feature makes no compelling case for reviving this bauble,...
Sputtering onto screens 75 years after David Lean’s original adaptation, TV director Edward Hall’s debut feature makes no compelling case for reviving this bauble,...
- 1/14/2021
- by Guy Lodge
- Variety Film + TV
The moment a group of Cornish fishermen and lifeboatmen turned their charitable crooning on the shore of Port Isaac into a Universal Music record deal that saw them debut in the top ten was the moment producers started falling over themselves to sign the life rights for a cinematic adaptation. And just as the band subsequently released another two collections of sea shanties and traditional folk songs despite their original one-album contract, it appears that Chris Foggin’s feel-good dramedy will soon receive its own sequel. I guess that’s the power of Fisherman’s Friends and their inspiring bond steeped in history, work ethic, family, and friendship. They’re a band that’s as easy to underestimate as they are to champion once they’ve proven you wrong because the music doesn’t lie.
That doesn’t, however, mean that screenwriters Piers Ashworth, Meg Leonard, and Nick Moorcroft had a...
That doesn’t, however, mean that screenwriters Piers Ashworth, Meg Leonard, and Nick Moorcroft had a...
- 7/20/2020
- by Jared Mobarak
- The Film Stage
Exclusive: IFC Films has acquired the North American rights to Blithe Spirit starring Leslie Mann, Dan Stevens, Isla Fisher and Judi Dench.
Edward Hall directs a script written by Nick Moorcroft, Meg Leonard and Piers Ashworth which is based on the play of the same name by Noel Coward. The film also stars Julian Rhind-Tutt, Emilia Fox, Adil Ray (Beecham Hosue) and James Fleet.
Blithe Spirit follows best-selling crime novelist Charles (Stevens) who is finishing his first screenplay but is suffering from a terrible case of writer’s block. His picture-perfect new wife Ruth (Isla Fisher) is doing her best to keep him focused so they can fulfill her dream of leaving London for Hollywood. Charles...
Edward Hall directs a script written by Nick Moorcroft, Meg Leonard and Piers Ashworth which is based on the play of the same name by Noel Coward. The film also stars Julian Rhind-Tutt, Emilia Fox, Adil Ray (Beecham Hosue) and James Fleet.
Blithe Spirit follows best-selling crime novelist Charles (Stevens) who is finishing his first screenplay but is suffering from a terrible case of writer’s block. His picture-perfect new wife Ruth (Isla Fisher) is doing her best to keep him focused so they can fulfill her dream of leaving London for Hollywood. Charles...
- 6/11/2020
- by Dino-Ray Ramos
- Deadline Film + TV
To mark the release of Fisherman’s Friends on 8th July, we’ve been given 5 copies to give away on Blu-ray.
A fast-living, cynical London music executive (Danny Mays) heads to a remote Cornish village on a stag weekend where he s pranked by his boss (Noel Clarke) into trying to sign a group of shanty singing fishermen (led by James Purefoy). He becomes the ultimate fish out of water as he struggles to gain the respect or enthusiasm of the unlikely boy band and their families (including Tuppence Middleton) who value friendship and community over fame and fortune. As he s drawn deeper into the traditional way of life he s forced to re-evaluate his own integrity and ultimately question what success really means. Starring Daniel Mays, James Purefoy, Tuppence Middleton, David Hayman, Dave Johns, and Noel Clarke, Fisherman S Friends was shot on location in Cornwall and comes...
A fast-living, cynical London music executive (Danny Mays) heads to a remote Cornish village on a stag weekend where he s pranked by his boss (Noel Clarke) into trying to sign a group of shanty singing fishermen (led by James Purefoy). He becomes the ultimate fish out of water as he struggles to gain the respect or enthusiasm of the unlikely boy band and their families (including Tuppence Middleton) who value friendship and community over fame and fortune. As he s drawn deeper into the traditional way of life he s forced to re-evaluate his own integrity and ultimately question what success really means. Starring Daniel Mays, James Purefoy, Tuppence Middleton, David Hayman, Dave Johns, and Noel Clarke, Fisherman S Friends was shot on location in Cornwall and comes...
- 6/24/2019
- by Competitions
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Leslie Mann has been added to star in the cast of the upcoming adaptation of the 1941 play by Noel Coward, Blithe Spirit. She joins the already impressive cast of Judi Dench, Isla Fisher, and Dan Stevens with Ed Hall directing from the script by Piers Ashworth.
Deadline reports the following synopsis for the film:
The new film re-imagines the Coward play, as a writer of bestselling crime novels invites an eccentric mystic to his home in hopes of curing a terrible case of writer’s block he encounters as he tries to finish his first screenplay. That block isn’t helped much when the mystic contacts the spirit of his first wife.
This sounds pretty interesting, and has a great cast, so I’ll be checking it out. Does this sound like a movie you’d be interested in?...
Deadline reports the following synopsis for the film:
The new film re-imagines the Coward play, as a writer of bestselling crime novels invites an eccentric mystic to his home in hopes of curing a terrible case of writer’s block he encounters as he tries to finish his first screenplay. That block isn’t helped much when the mystic contacts the spirit of his first wife.
This sounds pretty interesting, and has a great cast, so I’ll be checking it out. Does this sound like a movie you’d be interested in?...
- 6/19/2019
- by Jessica Fisher
- GeekTyrant
Judi Dench, Leslie Mann and Dan Stevens are all set to lead the cast in an adaptation of Noel Coward’s play ‘Blithe Spirit’.
Directed by Edward Hall and written by Nick Moorcroft, Meg Leonard, Piers Ashworth, Isla Fisher (The Beach Bum, Confessions of a Shopaholic), Julian Rhind-Tut (Rush, Stardust), Emilia Fox, Dave Johns (I, Daniel Blake), James Fleet (Outlander, Four Weddings and a Funeral) all join Dench, Mann and Stevens on the reimaging of Coward’s classic comedy, about love that just won’t die…
The story follows Best-selling crime novelist Charles (Stevens), struggling with catastrophic writer’s block and a stressful deadline for his first screenplay. His picture-perfect second wife Ruth (Fisher) is doing her best to keep him focussed in the hope of fulfilling her dream of heading to Hollywood.
Charles’ desperate search for inspiration leads him to invite Madame Arcati (Dench), a medium recently exposed as a fraud,...
Directed by Edward Hall and written by Nick Moorcroft, Meg Leonard, Piers Ashworth, Isla Fisher (The Beach Bum, Confessions of a Shopaholic), Julian Rhind-Tut (Rush, Stardust), Emilia Fox, Dave Johns (I, Daniel Blake), James Fleet (Outlander, Four Weddings and a Funeral) all join Dench, Mann and Stevens on the reimaging of Coward’s classic comedy, about love that just won’t die…
The story follows Best-selling crime novelist Charles (Stevens), struggling with catastrophic writer’s block and a stressful deadline for his first screenplay. His picture-perfect second wife Ruth (Fisher) is doing her best to keep him focussed in the hope of fulfilling her dream of heading to Hollywood.
Charles’ desperate search for inspiration leads him to invite Madame Arcati (Dench), a medium recently exposed as a fraud,...
- 6/18/2019
- by Zehra Phelan
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Filming has started on “Blithe Spirit,” an adaptation of Noel Coward’s classic comedy about love that just won’t die. Judi Dench, Isla Fisher and Dan Stevens are among the cast in the picture, which is helmed by Edward Hall (“Downton Abbey”). Protagonist has closed a raft of pre-sales on the project, which was previously adapted for the screen by David Lean in 1945.
Other cast members in the movie from Fred Films, Powder Keg Pictures, British Lion Films, Align Pictures and Protagonist Pictures include Leslie Mann, Julian Rhind-Tut, Emilia Fox, Dave Johns, and James Fleet.
The story tracks crime writer Charles (Stevens), who is struggling with writer’s block and a deadline for his first screenplay. His second wife, Ruth (Fisher), is doing her best to keep him focused in the hope of fulfilling her dream of heading to Hollywood. When Charles invites medium Madame Arcati (Dench) to perform a séance,...
Other cast members in the movie from Fred Films, Powder Keg Pictures, British Lion Films, Align Pictures and Protagonist Pictures include Leslie Mann, Julian Rhind-Tut, Emilia Fox, Dave Johns, and James Fleet.
The story tracks crime writer Charles (Stevens), who is struggling with writer’s block and a deadline for his first screenplay. His second wife, Ruth (Fisher), is doing her best to keep him focused in the hope of fulfilling her dream of heading to Hollywood. When Charles invites medium Madame Arcati (Dench) to perform a séance,...
- 6/18/2019
- by Stewart Clarke
- Variety Film + TV
Principal photography has now started on the project, which is directed by Edward Hall.
Studiocanal has acquired UK rights to Edward Hall’s Blithe Spirit, an adaptation of Noel Coward’s 1941 play, from Protagonist Pictures.
Leslie Mann has also joined the previously announced Judi Dench, Isla Fisher and Dan Stevens in the cast, which also includes Julian Rhind-Tutt, Emilia Fox, Dave Johns and James Fleet.
Principal photography has now started on the project, which is written by Nick Moorcroft, Meg Leonard and Piers Ashworth. It is shooting in and around London.
London-based Protagonist Pictures is handling worldwide rights on the...
Studiocanal has acquired UK rights to Edward Hall’s Blithe Spirit, an adaptation of Noel Coward’s 1941 play, from Protagonist Pictures.
Leslie Mann has also joined the previously announced Judi Dench, Isla Fisher and Dan Stevens in the cast, which also includes Julian Rhind-Tutt, Emilia Fox, Dave Johns and James Fleet.
Principal photography has now started on the project, which is written by Nick Moorcroft, Meg Leonard and Piers Ashworth. It is shooting in and around London.
London-based Protagonist Pictures is handling worldwide rights on the...
- 6/18/2019
- by Orlando Parfitt
- ScreenDaily
Principal photography is under way in UK on comedy feature Blithe Spirit, starring Dan Stevens (Beauty And The Beast), Isla Fisher (The Beach Bum), Julian Rhind-Tut (Rush), Emilia Fox (Silent Witness), Dave Johns, James Fleet (Outlander) and Judi Dench (Skyfall). As we revealed yesterday, Leslie Mann (This is 40) has also joined in a lead role.
StudioCanal has acquired the film for the UK with Protagonist also closing several territories in Cannes including Australia/New Zealand (Transmission), Spain (A Contracorriente), Scandinavia (Scanbox), Latin America (Cinepolis), Portugal (Nos Lusomundo), Cis/Baltics (Paradise), Eastern Europe (M2), Greece/Cyprus (Tanweer), Israel (Forum Films), Philippines (Pioneer), Taiwan (Cai Chang), the Middle East (Front Row), South Africa (Empire) and Airlines (Echo Lake).
Edward Hall (Downton Abbey) is directing from Nick Moorcroft, Meg Leonard and Piers Ashworth’s adaptation of the Noel Coward play about best-selling crime novelist Charles (Stevens) who is struggling with...
StudioCanal has acquired the film for the UK with Protagonist also closing several territories in Cannes including Australia/New Zealand (Transmission), Spain (A Contracorriente), Scandinavia (Scanbox), Latin America (Cinepolis), Portugal (Nos Lusomundo), Cis/Baltics (Paradise), Eastern Europe (M2), Greece/Cyprus (Tanweer), Israel (Forum Films), Philippines (Pioneer), Taiwan (Cai Chang), the Middle East (Front Row), South Africa (Empire) and Airlines (Echo Lake).
Edward Hall (Downton Abbey) is directing from Nick Moorcroft, Meg Leonard and Piers Ashworth’s adaptation of the Noel Coward play about best-selling crime novelist Charles (Stevens) who is struggling with...
- 6/18/2019
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Leslie Mann has joined the all-star cast of Blithe Spirit, based on the renowned play by Noel Coward.
Mann joins Dan Stevens (Legion), Isla Fisher (The Beach Bum), Julian Rhind-Tut (Rush), Emilia Fox (Silent Witness), Dave Johns (I, Daniel Blake), James Fleet (Four Weddings and a Funeral) and Judi Dench (Philomena) in the film, being directed by Edward Hall (Downton Abbey) from a script by Nick Moorcroft, Meg Leonard and Piers Ashworth. Production has begun.
The re-imagining of Cowards's classic comedy sees Stevens playing a best-selling crime novelist struggling with catastrophic writer’s block whose desperate search for ...
Mann joins Dan Stevens (Legion), Isla Fisher (The Beach Bum), Julian Rhind-Tut (Rush), Emilia Fox (Silent Witness), Dave Johns (I, Daniel Blake), James Fleet (Four Weddings and a Funeral) and Judi Dench (Philomena) in the film, being directed by Edward Hall (Downton Abbey) from a script by Nick Moorcroft, Meg Leonard and Piers Ashworth. Production has begun.
The re-imagining of Cowards's classic comedy sees Stevens playing a best-selling crime novelist struggling with catastrophic writer’s block whose desperate search for ...
- 6/18/2019
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Leslie Mann has joined the all-star cast of Blithe Spirit, based on the renowned play by Noel Coward.
Mann joins Dan Stevens (Legion), Isla Fisher (The Beach Bum), Julian Rhind-Tut (Rush), Emilia Fox (Silent Witness), Dave Johns (I, Daniel Blake), James Fleet (Four Weddings and a Funeral) and Judi Dench (Philomena) in the film, being directed by Edward Hall (Downton Abbey) from a script by Nick Moorcroft, Meg Leonard and Piers Ashworth. Production has begun.
The re-imagining of Cowards's classic comedy sees Stevens playing a best-selling crime novelist struggling with catastrophic writer’s block whose desperate search for ...
Mann joins Dan Stevens (Legion), Isla Fisher (The Beach Bum), Julian Rhind-Tut (Rush), Emilia Fox (Silent Witness), Dave Johns (I, Daniel Blake), James Fleet (Four Weddings and a Funeral) and Judi Dench (Philomena) in the film, being directed by Edward Hall (Downton Abbey) from a script by Nick Moorcroft, Meg Leonard and Piers Ashworth. Production has begun.
The re-imagining of Cowards's classic comedy sees Stevens playing a best-selling crime novelist struggling with catastrophic writer’s block whose desperate search for ...
- 6/18/2019
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
Exclusive: Leslie Mann is set to star as Elvira in Blithe Spirit, the adaptation of the 1941 Noel Coward play that already had Dan Stevens, Isla Fisher and Judi Dench set to star, and Ed Hall to direct the script by Nick Moorcroft, Meg Leonard and Piers Ashworth.
The new film re-imagines the Coward play, as a writer of bestselling crime novels invites an eccentric mystic to his home in hopes of curing a terrible case of writer’s block he encounters as he tries to finish his first screenplay. That block isn’t helped much when the mystic contacts the spirit of his first wife. David Lean directed the first film adaptation of the play in 1945.
Producers are Fisherman’s Friends trio James Spring, Leonard, and Moorcroft, alongside Hilary Bevan Jones, Peter Snell and Tuni Pinnolis. The project is a Fred Films and Powder Keg Pictures production in association with British Lion Films.
The new film re-imagines the Coward play, as a writer of bestselling crime novels invites an eccentric mystic to his home in hopes of curing a terrible case of writer’s block he encounters as he tries to finish his first screenplay. That block isn’t helped much when the mystic contacts the spirit of his first wife. David Lean directed the first film adaptation of the play in 1945.
Producers are Fisherman’s Friends trio James Spring, Leonard, and Moorcroft, alongside Hilary Bevan Jones, Peter Snell and Tuni Pinnolis. The project is a Fred Films and Powder Keg Pictures production in association with British Lion Films.
- 6/17/2019
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
The Fisherman’s Friends band were in Cannes on Friday (May 17) to perform a gig on the beach.
Fisherman’s Friends, Chris Foggin’s UK comedy which has been a box office smash in its home territory, has been racking up the international territory deals.
James Scott’s Legacy Rights is handling sales on the project and has now sold South Africa (Ster Kinekor), Australia (Roadshow), Germany and Benelux (Splendid), Israel (Forum), The Middle East (Phars), and Singapore and Malaysia (Shaws).
Deals were previously announced for Latin America (Sun Distribution), Japan (New Select), Spain (Diamond/Sun Distribution), and Scandinavia (Scanbox...
Fisherman’s Friends, Chris Foggin’s UK comedy which has been a box office smash in its home territory, has been racking up the international territory deals.
James Scott’s Legacy Rights is handling sales on the project and has now sold South Africa (Ster Kinekor), Australia (Roadshow), Germany and Benelux (Splendid), Israel (Forum), The Middle East (Phars), and Singapore and Malaysia (Shaws).
Deals were previously announced for Latin America (Sun Distribution), Japan (New Select), Spain (Diamond/Sun Distribution), and Scandinavia (Scanbox...
- 5/18/2019
- by Tom Grater
- ScreenDaily
Film is based on Noel Coward’s 1941 play.
Judi Dench, Dan Stevens and Isla Fisher will lead the cast of Edward Hall’s Blithe Spirit, based on Noel Coward’s 1941 play.
London-based Protagonist Pictures is handling worldwide rights on the project and has inked a series of early pre-sales on the title including Australia and New Zealand (Transmission), Spain (A Contracorriente Films), Airlines (Echo Lake Distribution), South Africa (Empire Entertainment), Middle East (Front Row), and Greece (Tanweer).
The feature will be a re-imagining of Coward’s comedy stage play, in which a best-selling crime novelist suffering from writer’s block...
Judi Dench, Dan Stevens and Isla Fisher will lead the cast of Edward Hall’s Blithe Spirit, based on Noel Coward’s 1941 play.
London-based Protagonist Pictures is handling worldwide rights on the project and has inked a series of early pre-sales on the title including Australia and New Zealand (Transmission), Spain (A Contracorriente Films), Airlines (Echo Lake Distribution), South Africa (Empire Entertainment), Middle East (Front Row), and Greece (Tanweer).
The feature will be a re-imagining of Coward’s comedy stage play, in which a best-selling crime novelist suffering from writer’s block...
- 5/15/2019
- by Tom Grater
- ScreenDaily
Exclusive: Brit comedy Fisherman’s Friends, from the writing and producing team behind UK box office hit Finding Your Feet, has netted a UK deal with Entertainment Film Distributors.
The film, currently in post-production, has an ensemble cast featuring Daniel Mays (Atonement), Tuppence Middleton (The Imitation Game), James Purefoy (Solomon Kane), David Hayman (Finding Your Feet), Dave Johns Sam Swainsbury (Thor: The Dark World), Maggie Steed (Paddington 2) Christian Brassington (St Trinian’s 2) and Noel Clarke (Brotherhood). Here’s a first look at some of the team.
Directed by Chris Foggin (Kids In Love), the Cornwall-shot feature is inspired by the true story of the male singing group Fisherman’s Friends, who went from performing in their village harbour to securing a deal with Island Records, a top-ten album and performing on the pyramid stage at Glastonbury.
Producers are James Spring, Meg Leonard and Nick Moorcroft with Piers Ashworth (St Trinian’s), Leonard and Moorcroft writing the screenplay.
Legacy Rights, the sales label headed up by James Scott, has inked deals in Latin America and Spain (Sun Distribution), Scandinavia (Scanbox), Japan (New Select), Middle East (Phars) and Airlines (Jaguar). Scott will be showing a promo to buyers at the Toronto International Film Festival next week.
Pic is a Head Gear Films and Metrol Technology presentation in association with Legacy Rights of a Fred Films and Powder Keg Production in association with Hindsight and Ipg Media. Post-Production is being handled by Lipsync.
The film, currently in post-production, has an ensemble cast featuring Daniel Mays (Atonement), Tuppence Middleton (The Imitation Game), James Purefoy (Solomon Kane), David Hayman (Finding Your Feet), Dave Johns Sam Swainsbury (Thor: The Dark World), Maggie Steed (Paddington 2) Christian Brassington (St Trinian’s 2) and Noel Clarke (Brotherhood). Here’s a first look at some of the team.
Directed by Chris Foggin (Kids In Love), the Cornwall-shot feature is inspired by the true story of the male singing group Fisherman’s Friends, who went from performing in their village harbour to securing a deal with Island Records, a top-ten album and performing on the pyramid stage at Glastonbury.
Producers are James Spring, Meg Leonard and Nick Moorcroft with Piers Ashworth (St Trinian’s), Leonard and Moorcroft writing the screenplay.
Legacy Rights, the sales label headed up by James Scott, has inked deals in Latin America and Spain (Sun Distribution), Scandinavia (Scanbox), Japan (New Select), Middle East (Phars) and Airlines (Jaguar). Scott will be showing a promo to buyers at the Toronto International Film Festival next week.
Pic is a Head Gear Films and Metrol Technology presentation in association with Legacy Rights of a Fred Films and Powder Keg Production in association with Hindsight and Ipg Media. Post-Production is being handled by Lipsync.
- 8/31/2018
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Shooting is underway on UK comedy Fisherman’s Friends, from the writing and producing team behind UK feature Finding Your Feet.
Shooting is underway on UK comedy Fisherman’s Friends, from the writing and producing team behind UK feature Finding Your Feet.
The film has an ensemble cast featuring Daniel Mays (Atonement), Tuppence Middleton (The Imitation Game), James Purefoy (Solomon Kane), David Hayman (Finding Your Feet), Dave Johns Sam Swainsbury (Thor: The Dark World), Maggie Steed (Paddington 2) and Noel Clarke (Brotherhood).
Chris Foggin (Kids In Love) is directing, his second feature after a trio of award-winning shorts including Friend...
Shooting is underway on UK comedy Fisherman’s Friends, from the writing and producing team behind UK feature Finding Your Feet.
The film has an ensemble cast featuring Daniel Mays (Atonement), Tuppence Middleton (The Imitation Game), James Purefoy (Solomon Kane), David Hayman (Finding Your Feet), Dave Johns Sam Swainsbury (Thor: The Dark World), Maggie Steed (Paddington 2) and Noel Clarke (Brotherhood).
Chris Foggin (Kids In Love) is directing, his second feature after a trio of award-winning shorts including Friend...
- 5/8/2018
- by Tom Grater
- ScreenDaily
Ealing Studios has acquired a significant stake in TV and film company GreenAcre Films and forged a new creative partnership with the company that will see Ealing Studios expand its TV division.
Having already announced earlier this year the ITV commission of Maigret for two stand-alone films starring Rowan Atkinson, Ealing Studios’ stake in GreenAcre will see them develop a TV slate for both UK and international broadcasters.
It marks the first partnership at the newly restructured Ealing Studios headed by Ben Latham-Jones.
Co-founded by Nadine Marsh-Edwards and Amanda Jenks in 2010, GreenAcre Films became a division of Wall to Wall in 2012. It will continue to co-produce its current drama slate, which includes projects for HBO, BBC and ITV.
As well as developing new TV projects, GreenAcre will also expand its feature film roster which already has a number of titles in development with the BFI.
In a joint statement, GreenAcre co-founders Nadine Marsh-Edwards and Amanda Jenks said:...
Having already announced earlier this year the ITV commission of Maigret for two stand-alone films starring Rowan Atkinson, Ealing Studios’ stake in GreenAcre will see them develop a TV slate for both UK and international broadcasters.
It marks the first partnership at the newly restructured Ealing Studios headed by Ben Latham-Jones.
Co-founded by Nadine Marsh-Edwards and Amanda Jenks in 2010, GreenAcre Films became a division of Wall to Wall in 2012. It will continue to co-produce its current drama slate, which includes projects for HBO, BBC and ITV.
As well as developing new TV projects, GreenAcre will also expand its feature film roster which already has a number of titles in development with the BFI.
In a joint statement, GreenAcre co-founders Nadine Marsh-Edwards and Amanda Jenks said:...
- 5/21/2015
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
Ben Latham-Jones launches slate after buying out Barnaby Thompson.
In a multi-million dollar deal producer Ben Latham-Jones (Nina) has bought Ealing Studios Entertainment - the production arm of the iconic studio - from Barnaby Thompson and will take over the role of head of studio.
Thompson, who is set to focus on directing, will retain his shares in Ealing Studios Operations, which runs the stages and facilities business side of the business, alongside partners, Harry Handelsman and Uri Fruchtmann.
Included in the deal is part of the studio’s catalogue, comprising 26 films while further library and company acquisitions are understood to be in the works for former Fox Searchlight creative director Latham-Jones, who raised a multi-million dollar fund to support Ealing Entertainment, which he has worked at since 2013.
New projects on the outfit’s development slate include Swedish director Jesper Granslandt’s (Blondie) drama Vacation, set to star woman of the hour Noomi Rapace (The Drop) and Marwan Kenzari...
In a multi-million dollar deal producer Ben Latham-Jones (Nina) has bought Ealing Studios Entertainment - the production arm of the iconic studio - from Barnaby Thompson and will take over the role of head of studio.
Thompson, who is set to focus on directing, will retain his shares in Ealing Studios Operations, which runs the stages and facilities business side of the business, alongside partners, Harry Handelsman and Uri Fruchtmann.
Included in the deal is part of the studio’s catalogue, comprising 26 films while further library and company acquisitions are understood to be in the works for former Fox Searchlight creative director Latham-Jones, who raised a multi-million dollar fund to support Ealing Entertainment, which he has worked at since 2013.
New projects on the outfit’s development slate include Swedish director Jesper Granslandt’s (Blondie) drama Vacation, set to star woman of the hour Noomi Rapace (The Drop) and Marwan Kenzari...
- 5/17/2015
- by andreas.wiseman@screendaily.com (Andreas Wiseman)
- ScreenDaily
There's no way to avoid the fact - this year's film adaptation of the young adult novel series "Vampire Academy" was a bomb. The first film adaptation of Richelle Mead's popular series of novels pulled in a worldwide gross of just $15 million.
Nevertheless, fans have been holding out hope that the second book, "Frostbite," could make it to the big screen one day. Now it seems they might get their wish.
The producing team behind the first film have launched an IndieGoGo campaign to get the film made. They say they have successfully funded the majority of the movie, but to get a green light they need to raise $1.5 million.
The campaign launched just over a week ago and is 11% ($171,000) on the way towards its goal. If the film gets funded, a six-week shoot is expected to take place in Europe or Australia. Piers Ashworth penned the script for the follow-up,...
Nevertheless, fans have been holding out hope that the second book, "Frostbite," could make it to the big screen one day. Now it seems they might get their wish.
The producing team behind the first film have launched an IndieGoGo campaign to get the film made. They say they have successfully funded the majority of the movie, but to get a green light they need to raise $1.5 million.
The campaign launched just over a week ago and is 11% ($171,000) on the way towards its goal. If the film gets funded, a six-week shoot is expected to take place in Europe or Australia. Piers Ashworth penned the script for the follow-up,...
- 8/14/2014
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
I’ll avoid the obligatory joke about a vampire flick lacking bite at the box office, but when Vampire Academy failed to make it past seventh place on opening weekend, with just $4 million upon release and a total worldwide gross of $15 million, chances of a sequel appeared less than likely. However, it turns out that fans of Rachel Mead’s novel series can still make an adaptation of the second book, Frostbite, happen. They’ll just have to stump up the cash for it first.
The producers behind Vampire Academy, hoping to save the franchise, have launched an IndieGoGo campaign asking fans to donate in order to get Frostbite off the ground. According to the campaign page, they have exhausted their resources and successfully raised most of the money for the film’s budget, but financiers want to see fan interest before committing to Frostbite.
So, the campaign is asking...
The producers behind Vampire Academy, hoping to save the franchise, have launched an IndieGoGo campaign asking fans to donate in order to get Frostbite off the ground. According to the campaign page, they have exhausted their resources and successfully raised most of the money for the film’s budget, but financiers want to see fan interest before committing to Frostbite.
So, the campaign is asking...
- 8/14/2014
- by Isaac Feldberg
- We Got This Covered
Director of Calendar Girls and Made in Dagenham will bring the story of Port Isaac shanty singers to cinemas
The story of Cornish sea shanty group the Fisherman's Friends is to be made into a film. The good news will be welcomed by supporters of the band still mourning the death of singer Trevor Grills and tour manager Paul McMullen, who died in an accident at the G Live theatre venue in Guildford earlier this year.
Reading on mobile? Watch the band's video here
The film, to be directed by Nigel Cole, will chart a journey that started in a pub in Port Isaac and led to the Sunday morning slot on the main stage of Glastonbury festival in 2011. The 10-strong group of fishermen, coastguards and lifeboatmen gained a boost after DJ Johnnie Walker heard them play while on holiday in the Cornish village. A £1m record deal soon followed.
The story of Cornish sea shanty group the Fisherman's Friends is to be made into a film. The good news will be welcomed by supporters of the band still mourning the death of singer Trevor Grills and tour manager Paul McMullen, who died in an accident at the G Live theatre venue in Guildford earlier this year.
Reading on mobile? Watch the band's video here
The film, to be directed by Nigel Cole, will chart a journey that started in a pub in Port Isaac and led to the Sunday morning slot on the main stage of Glastonbury festival in 2011. The 10-strong group of fishermen, coastguards and lifeboatmen gained a boost after DJ Johnnie Walker heard them play while on holiday in the Cornish village. A £1m record deal soon followed.
- 7/26/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Author Erica Jong‘s seminal 1973 novel “Fear of Flying” is still considered a groundbreaking piece of erotic fiction, helped herald in the second wave of feminism, and remains one of the top fifty bestselling novels of all time, but it’s also managed to go four decades without a big screen adaptation. That’s now set to finally change, as director Laurie Collyer (Sherrybaby) has been set to direct a feature film based on the work, complete with a script by Piers Ashworth (Burke and Hare, St. Trinians). Jong’s novel centers on poet Isadora Wing who, during a trip to Vienna with her second husband, comes to grips with her unfulfilling marriage and decides to embark on a series of highly sexual encounters with other men. If you’ve ever heard the term “zipless fuck,” you’ve got Jong and her book to thank for it, as she coined the term (which basically refers to a...
- 5/10/2013
- by Kate Erbland
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
Exclusive: Laurie Collyer will next direct an adaptation of Erica Jong‘s iconic Fear Of Flying. This was the erotic publishing phenomenon a la Fifty Shades Of Grey, selling over 27 million copies worldwide to become one of the top 50 bestselling novels in publishing history. Donald Kushner (Tron Legacy, Monster), Leigh Ann Burton and Piers Ashworth have set up the project to produce for Blu-Sky Media, along with Mark Damon and Remington Chase (Lone Survivor, End Of Watch) via his Envision Entertainment. Nostradamus scribe Piers Ashworth wrote the script, and producers plan to begin production later this year, shooting throughout Europe. Nice to see the groundbreaking book is still viable as it gets an international re-release marking its 40th year on bookshelves. Fear Of Flying tells the story of Isadora Wing, who combats her failing marriage by taking an existential sexual odyssey across Europe. She searches for the “zipless fuck”, which...
- 5/10/2013
- by MIKE FLEMING JR
- Deadline
Reliance Entertainment and Kintop Pictures have acquired feature rights to Kristin Cashore's 2008 young-adult fantasy trilogy "Graceling" with plans to launch a possible franchise.
The story centers on young woman who lives in a world where select people born with an extreme skill — people called 'Grace'. Said people are feared and exploited, while she is burdened with the Grace of killing.
Piers Ashworth ("Nostradamus") will write the script, while Deepak Nayar, Tabrez Noorani and Leigh Ann Burton will produce.
Source: Variety...
The story centers on young woman who lives in a world where select people born with an extreme skill — people called 'Grace'. Said people are feared and exploited, while she is burdened with the Grace of killing.
Piers Ashworth ("Nostradamus") will write the script, while Deepak Nayar, Tabrez Noorani and Leigh Ann Burton will produce.
Source: Variety...
- 4/26/2013
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
India-based Reliance Entertainment has acquired as a film franchise starter the rights to Kristin Cashore's bestselling, award-winning young adult fantasy Graceling , in partnership with Kintop Pictures. British screenwriter Piers Ashworth ( Nostradamus ) has signed on to write the script. Graceling is the first installment of "The Seven Kingdoms Trilogy," which also includes The New York Times bestsellers Fire and Bitterblue . These books have won numerous awards, including the Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award, the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Children's Literature, the Siba Book Award/Ya, Indies Choice Book Award Honor Book, and Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year. Graceling , published by Harcourt Children's Books, tells the story of the vulnerable yet...
- 4/25/2013
- Comingsoon.net
Relativity Media has taken rights to a script about the manhunt for cocaine kingpin Pablo Escobar, called "Silver or Lead." The original draft is from Michael Kane, while Piers Ashworth's screenplay will serve as the basis for Spanish director Enrique Urbizu, yet another overseas helmer making his English-language debut. "Silver of Lead" will center on the conflict between Escobar and General Hugo Martinez, as chronicled in Simon Strong's book "Whitewash: Pablo Escobar and the Cocaine Wars." Relativity has the rights to the book, as well as life rights to Escobar, Martinez and former Bogota DEA chief Joe Toft. Ryan Kavanaugh will produce with Mark Canton, Donald Kushner and Leigh Ann Burton. Canton says hopefully that the project is "reminiscent of 'The Untouchables.'" As for that title: Escobar had a phrase, "Plata o Plomo," meaning you could take his silver or his lead. Johnny Depp already played American cocaine king George Jung in "Blow,...
- 3/6/2013
- by Sophia Savage
- Thompson on Hollywood
Relativity Media has acquired Piers Ashworth's script for "Silver or Lead" which deals with the manhunt for cocaine kingpin Pablo Escobar.
Enrique Urbizu ("No Rest for the Wicked") will helm the project in which the focus is on the personal war between the Colombian drug lord and Brigadier-General Hugo Martinez.
Martinez was the commander of the Colombian police task force 'Search Bloc' which was setup to bring Escobar down, and ultimately succeeded.
Ashworth penned the script based on an original draft by Michael Kane, and Simon Strong's book "Whitewash: Pablo Escobar and the Cocaine Wars".
Mark Canton, Donald Kushner and Leigh Ann Burton will produce. This is not to be confused with other Escobar films in the works, such as the Benicio del Toro-led "Paradise Lost".
Source: THR...
Enrique Urbizu ("No Rest for the Wicked") will helm the project in which the focus is on the personal war between the Colombian drug lord and Brigadier-General Hugo Martinez.
Martinez was the commander of the Colombian police task force 'Search Bloc' which was setup to bring Escobar down, and ultimately succeeded.
Ashworth penned the script based on an original draft by Michael Kane, and Simon Strong's book "Whitewash: Pablo Escobar and the Cocaine Wars".
Mark Canton, Donald Kushner and Leigh Ann Burton will produce. This is not to be confused with other Escobar films in the works, such as the Benicio del Toro-led "Paradise Lost".
Source: THR...
- 3/6/2013
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
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