Following its Midnight program screening at the Sundance Film Festival (read Heather Wixson's review here), the dark comedy Arizona has been acquired by RLJE Films for North American distribution this summer:
Press Release: LOS ANGELES, May 1, 2018 – RLJE Films, a brand of RLJ Entertainment (NASDAQ: RLJE), has acquired all North American rights to Arizona, which premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. The directorial debut of Jonathan Watson (HBO’s “Vice Principals”), the film was written by Luke Del Tredici (FOX’s “Brooklyn Nine-Nine”). Arizona stars Danny McBride (Pineapple Express), Rosemarie DeWitt (Poltergeist), Luke Wilson (Idiocracy), Elizabeth Gillies (CW’s “Dynasty”) and Kaitlin Olson (FX’s “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia”). RLJE Films plans to release Arizona in theaters in summer 2018.
“Arizona was loved by audiences at the Sundance Film Festival for its unique story with a comedic twist,” said Mark Ward, Chief Acquisitions Officer for RLJE Films. “With the combination of a great cast and a smart screenplay, we’re excited let audiences experience Arizona this summer.”
Set in the midst of the 2009 housing crisis, Arizona is a darkly comedic story that follows Cassie Fowler, a single mom and struggling realtor whose life goes off the rails when she witnesses a murder.
Arizona was produced by Imperative Entertainment’s Dan Friedkin (All the Money in the World), Ryan Friedkin (Hot Summer Nights), Bradley Thomas (All the Money in the World ) and Rough House Picture’s McBride and Brandon James (HBO’s “Vice Principals”).
Ward and Jess De Leo from RLJE negotiated the deal with CAA on behalf of the filmmakers.
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ABOUT RLJ ENTERTAINMENT
RLJ Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ: RLJE) is a premium digital channel company serving distinct audiences primarily through its popular OTT branded channels, Acorn TV (British TV) and UMC (Urban Movie Channel), which have rapidly grown through development, acquisition, and distribution of its exclusive rights to a large library of international and British dramas, independent feature films and urban content. RLJE’s titles are also distributed in multiple formats including broadcast and pay television, theatrical and non-theatrical, DVD, Blu-ray, and a variety of digital distribution models (including EST, VOD, SVOD and AVOD) in North America, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Additionally, through Acorn Media Enterprises, its UK development arm, RLJE co-produces and develops new programs and owns 64% of Agatha Christie Limited.
For more information, please visit RLJEntertainment.com, Acorn.tv, and UMC.tv.
RLJE Films’ new and upcoming features include Brawl in Cell Block 99 starring Vince Vaughn and written and directed by S. Craig Zahler, I Kill Giants with Zoe Saldana and Madison Wolfe, and Terminal starring Margot Robbie, Simon Pegg and Mike Myers. www.us.rljentertainment.com.
ABOUT IMPERATIVE ENTERTAINMENT
Founded in 2014, Imperative Entertainment is an innovative entertainment studio located in Santa Monica, CA. With a keen eye for bold and powerful storytelling that captivates and excites audiences, Imperative develops, produces and finances original & branded entertainment focusing on film, television and documentaries. The company is currently behind projects such as the Academy Award® nominated All the Money in the World (Best Supporting Actor), Academy Award® nominated, 2017 Palme d’Or® winning film The Square, and Arizona, which recently premiered at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival.
Raised on a steady diet of R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps books and Are You Afraid of the Dark?, Derek has been fascinated with fear since he first saw ForeverWare being used on an episode of Eerie, Indiana.
When he’s not writing about horror as the Senior News Reporter for Daily Dead, Derek can be found daydreaming about the Santa Carla Boardwalk from The Lost Boys or reading Stephen King and Brian Keene novels.
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