Deal
of the
WeekTHE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER 14 FEBRUA RY 26, 2020
7 Days of DEALS
Who’s inking on the dotted line this week
The Report
LEE: COURTESY OF VALENCE MEDIA. BONGIOVI, GURIRA, WATTS, LAWRENCE: JON KOPALOFF/GETTY IMAGES. PATEL: MIKE MARSLAND/WIREIMAGE. NANJIANI: GARY GERSHOFF/GETTY IMAGES. OH: FRAZER HARRISON/GETTY IMAGES. EVANS: JOHN LAMPARSKI/GETTY IMAGES. WEST: GOOGLE EARTH. DILLARD: GREG DOHERTY/GETTY IMAGES.PAIN: COURTESY OF HARPERCOLLINS. PINEWOOD: VIEW PICTURES/UNIVERSAL IMAGES GROUP VIAGETTY IMAGES. CHEN: RODIN ECKENROTH/GETTY IMAGES. LIN: WILLY SANJUAN/INVISION FOR THE TELEVISION ACADEMY/AP IMAGES. THOMSPON: STEVESANDS/NEWYORKNEWSWIRE/MEGA/NEWSCOM.FILM
Chris Evans (CAA, 3 Arts,
Sloane Offer) is in talks
to play the dentist in
Greg Berlanti’s adaptation
of Little Shop of Horrors for
Warner Bros.Bette Midler (CAA), Goldie
Hawn (ICM, Untitled,
Jackoway Austen) and
Diane Keaton (WME,
Pearlman & Tishbi) will
reunite for New Republic
Pictures’ multigenerational
comedy Family Jewels.Margot Robbie (CAA,
Australia’s Aran Michael,
Management 360,
Jackoway Austen) and
Michael B. Jordan (WME,
Ziffren Brittenham) have
joined Christian Bale in
David O. Russell’s untitled
New Regency drama.Dev Patel (WME, the U.K.’s
Curtis Brown, Magnolia,
Lichter Grossman) will star
in financial thriller Flash
Crash for New Regency and
See-Saw Films.Rocketman’s Dexter
Fletcher (CAA, Sloane
Offer) will direct a
Paramount reboot of spy
thriller The Saint.Three deals announced at
the Berlin Film Festival indi-
cate the U.K.’s status as the
next battleground for U.S.
entertainment giants.
Endeavor Content took a stake in The
Ink Factory (The Night Manager), while
CAA picked up a minority chunk of former
StudioCanal U.K. boss Danny Perkins’ new
distribution banner, Elysian. Meanwhile,
Neon owners 30West acquired a slice of
film company Altitude (Diego Maradona).
Overall spend in U.K. production hit
a record $4.7 billion last year (spurred
on by a 29 percent surge in high-end TV
thanks to shows such as The Crown and
How Hollywood Is Colonizing U.K. Production
Sex Education). But the deals also boosted
confidence in British indie distribution,
which has been struggling as studios domi-
nate the box office. The success of Parasite
for exhibitor and distributor Curzon
(recently acquired by U.S. billionaireCharles Cohen) could presage things
to come. Studios too are staking greater
claim over the U.K.’s in-demand space, with
Atlanta-based Blackhall Studios announc-
ing a $195 million investment in a new
hub outside London. The company’s U.S.
clients were “all asking us to expand in the
U.K.,” CEO Ryan Millsap said Feb. 18.
And then there are the agencies angling
to replace their estranged WGA writers
with U.K. scribes. But unlike the traditional
model of agents on both sides of the
pond sharing clients, the U.S. majors are
expected to aggressively tout more U.K.
business. As one exec says, “It’s going to
be all-out war.” — ALEX RITMANASI AN A MER ICAN PRODUCERS:
NEW CLOUT AND NEW VENTURES
With Asian and Asian American actors and film-
makers gaining prominence in Hollywood — the
latest example: Parasite and The Farewell winning
top honors at the Oscars and Spirit Awards — their
counterparts in the executive suites are stepping
up as well.
Nina Yang Bongiovi, who runs Forest Whitaker’s
Significant Productions, revealed Feb. 24 that
she has teamed with a coalition of film and tech
veterans including Bing Chen, chairman of the
Asian American nonprofit Gold House, and Twitch
co-founder Kevin Lin to launch the film fund AUM
Group. Although founded by Asian Americans, the
fund will back an array of multicultural film proj-
ects, starting with Rebecca Hall’s directorial debut,
Passing. Now shooting, the drama is an adapta-
tion of Nella Larsen’s 1929 novel about the evolving
relationship between light-skinned black women
(played by Tessa Thompson and Ruth Negga).
AUM Group’s announcement came four days
after Mary Lee, most recently head of film at
Justin Lin’s Perfect Storm Entertainment, unveiled
her own banner, A-Major Media, which will focus
on producing Asian American film and TV content.
The company is backed by a non-exclusive majority
investment from THR parent Valence Media, mean-
ing that Lee is free to shop her projects to various
production partners. Financial terms for A-Major
and AUM Group were not disclosed.
Yang Bongiovi will continue to run Significant
(Sorry to Bother You, Dope, Fruitvale Station), whose
future projects will be supported by AUM Group,
as could films from other companies — such as
A-Major’s. “I’m excited about the fact that Mary
could have support from AUM Group,” Yang
Bongiovi tells THR. “We’re here to complement each
other on our growth and presence in the business.”
A-Major already has a handful of projects on its
slate, including an untitled film set up at New Line
produced by John Cho and a TV series produced byGemma Chan and Franklin Leonard. The company
also is developing an adaptation of the 2015 YA
novel I Believe in a Thing Called Love, about a teenage
girl using K-drama techniques to woo her crush;
an autobiographical film from Fresh Off the Boat
co-executive producer Kourtney Kang about her
high school experiences; and We Stan, a comedy
about K-pop fans and friends from Atypical scribe
Lauren Moon.
Yang Bongiovi and Lee cited 2018’s Crazy Rich
Asians as a watershed moment that sparked faith
to start their ventures. There have been Asian
American studio toppers (including current
DC Films chief Walter Hamada) and artists with
their own shingles (Daniel Dae Kim’s 3AD), but few
producer-driven companies like Dan Lin’s R ideback.
That’s changing, Lee says: “[The presence of Asian
Americans] has been good on the talent side, but it’s
very important to be on the executive side as well.
There have to be people in positions of power to
champion these stories.” — REBECCA SUNLeeYang
BongioviDisney and Netflix signed major long-term
leases with the U.K.’s Pinewood Studios in 2019.Danai
GuriraBig
DealChenKevin LinRuth Negga (left) and Tessa Thompson star in the period race
drama Passing, whose financing is led by AUM Group.