Entertainment One (eOne) and Tooley Productions have joined forces with Academy Award-winning actress Julia Roberts and her Red Om Films banner to produce an adaptation of internationally-acclaimed writer Harlan Coben’s New York Times best-selling novel, Fool Me Once. Roberts will star in the thriller, and produce alongside Tucker Tooley, and Red Om Films’ Lisa Gillan and Marisa Yeres Gill.
eOne and Tooley Productions will co-finance Fool Me Once, marking the first project under their recently-announced first look co-financing and international distribution deal. eOne will distribute the film in the UK, Canada, Australia/New Zealand, Benelux and Spain. Additionally, as part of eOne’s partnership with Sierra Pictures, the international sales and servicing of the film will be handled by Sierra/Affinity outside of territories where eOne directly distributes.
Fool Me Once centers on Maya (Roberts), an ex-special ops pilot who sees her daughter playing with her husband, a man who was supposedly murdered two weeks prior. What follows is a thrilling and twisted adventure as Maya tries to find out what is and is not real.
“The genre of ‘Fool Me Once’ is one of my favorites,” said Roberts. “Harlan Coben has created an exceptional story and an incredible female lead character. Mr. Coben and I see things in a joyfully similar way in our approach to this endeavor. We here at Red Om are simply thrilled to have this creative opportunity with Tucker and eOne.”
“I am thrilled to partner with Julia and Red Om on this project,” said Tucker Tooley, CEO of Tooley Productions. “Harlan is a master of his craft and Fool Me Once is one of his best novels to date. Along with eOne and Red Om, I am looking forward to bringing his work to the big screen.”
“With Julia Roberts starring in this smart, well-crafted thriller, ‘Fool Me Once’ is a project that audiences will gravitate towards,” said eOne’s Steve Bertram, President, Global Film Group. “We are looking forward to working with Red Om Films, and kicking off our partnership with Tooley Productions, to bring Harlan Coben’s critically acclaimed best-seller to screens around the world.”
(Photo Credit: WENN.com)
