Entertainment One’s Seville International has announced that award-winning actor/writer/director Xavier Dolan’s first English-language film The Death and Life of John F. Donovan has commenced production in Montréal. The feature, which stars Kit Harington, Jessica Chastain, Natalie Portman, Susan Sarandon, Kathy Bates, Ben Schnetzer, Michael Gambon, Bella Thorne, Thandie Newton, Chris Zylka and Emily Hampshire, will also continue production in Prague, the UK and New York.
The Death and Life of John F. Donovan takes place in the early 2000’s and centers on the tribulations of an American TV star in his late twenties (Harington) and his correspondence with Rupert Turner, a young actor-to-be living with his mother in England. Their lives take dramatic turns when the existence of their pen pal relationship is publicly exposed, eliciting the most ill-founded assumptions, and sending Donovan in a vertical downfall. A decade later, the young actor recollects his relationship with his past idol over the course of an interview.
Lyse Lafontaine of Lyla Films (Laurence Anyways) and Xavier Dolan and Nancy Grant of Sons of Manual (Mommy, Tom at the Farm, I Killed My Mother) are producing the film along with executive producer Joe Iacono.
“Xavier has been an inspiring partner and friend, and we are thrilled to be working together again as production begins on his next masterpiece,” said Anick Poirier, Senior Vice President, Sales, Seville International. “Coming off the strong debut and exceptional sales of his last film Juste la fin du monde, we can’t wait to share his English-language debut with the world. With an incredible, internationally acclaimed cast and a story that transcends borders and generations, ‘The Death and Life of John F. Donovan’ is sure to resonate profoundly with audiences everywhere.”
Seville International is handling international sales of the film in all media around the world, with the exception of France where the producers and Seville International jointly sold the rights to Mars Films, and in the US, where the film is being jointly handled by CAA. eOne and Les Films Séville will directly distribute the film throughout Canada and Québec.
(Photo Credit: WENN.com)
