International buyers have swiped right on Anna Kendrick’s directorial debut, The Dating Game.
The upcoming thriller was snatched up by multiple international distributors at the Toronto International Film Festival following an in-person pitch by Kendrick and AGC Studio’s CEO Stuart Ford, who are producing and fully financing the film.
Telepool prebought The Dating Game for Germany, while Signature Entertainment took rights in the U.K. and Ireland; Sun Distribution bought Latin America, Spain and Portugal; VVS Films scored Canadian rights; Lucky Red took Italian rights, and Roadshow Films landed the film for Australia and New Zealand, among many other deals.
Kendrick will also produce The Dating Game and star in the stranger-than-fiction true story as Cheryl Bradshaw, a bachelorette on the hit 1970s TV matchmaking show The Dating Game whose bachelor pick, Rodney Alcala, turns out to be a serial killer. Production on the film is set to start in Vancouver in late October.
AGC also racked up presales on Hitman from director Richard Linklater and star Glen Powell. credited as co-writers. Another based-on-a-true-story genre film, the noir comedy stars Powell as a sought-after hitman who is secretly working for the cops. Adria Arjona co-stars. Leonine Studios acquired German Swiss rights for the movie, with SND taking France, Sun Distribution picking up rights in Latin America and Spain, BIM Distribuzione taking Italy, Canada going to VVS Film, and Kino Swiat taking Poland, among other deals. Shooting on Hitman is set to kick off in New Orleans in October.
“At a time when the international theatrical market is still feeling its way back, it’s encouraging to see such strong pre-sales activity on both of these exciting projects,” Ford said in a statement. “The talent participation in Toronto was certainly a major factor in that strong sales performance and it confirms AGC’s worldview that the international pre-sale model is still an effective one for intelligent, commercial projects with bankable talent and that are presented to distributors in the right manner and at the right budget levels.”
In addition to Hitman and The Dating Game, AGC is currently in postproduction on Pierre Morel’s action comedy Freelance starring John Cena and Alison Brie, Chris Pine’s directorial debut Poolman, and Rupert Wyatt’s Desert Warrior with Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart and Ben Kingsley, all of which are on track to deliver in 2022 or early 2023.
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