Bleecker Street announced today that it has acquired North American rights to “The Friend,” from award-winning writer/directors Scott McGehee and David Siegel (“The Deep End,” “What Maisie Knew,” Bleecker Street’s “Montana Story”) and starring Naomi Watts (“Feud: Capote vs. The Swans,” “Mulholland Drive”), Bill Murray (“Lost in Translation,” “Rushmore”) and a remarkable Great Dane named Bing. The film’s ensemble cast also includes Sarah Pidgeon (“Stereophonic,” “The Wilds”), Carla Gugino (“The Fall of the House of Usher,” “San Andreas”), Constance Wu (“Crazy Rich Asians,” “Hustlers”), Noma Dumezweni (“The Undoing,” “The Wilds”) and Ann Dowd (“Hereditary,” Bleecker Street’s “Mass”).
“The Friend” world premiered to critical acclaim at the Telluride Film Festival earlier this fall, and was one of the few films to play the “trifecta” of Telluride, Toronto and New York Film Festivals. Described by Deadline as a “moving, funny, humane and quite unforgettable tale,” and currently holding a 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes, the film was adapted for the screen by Siegel & McGehee from Sigrid Nunez’s National Book Award-winning novel of the same name. (Nunez’ novel was also recently included in the New York Times’ list of the “100 Best Books of the 21st Century.”) “The Friend” was produced in New York City by McGehee, Siegel and Mike Spreter under the group’s recently formed Big Creek Projects production banner, alongside producer Liza Chasin and her 3dot Productions. Executive producers include Margaret Chernin and Naomi Watts. Bleecker Street is planning an early 2025 theatrical release.
In “The Friend,” writer and teacher Iris (Watts) finds her comfortable, solitary New York life thrown into disarray after her closest friend and mentor (Murray) dies suddenly and bequeaths her his beloved 150 lb. Great Dane. The regal yet intractable beast, named Apollo, immediately creates practical problems for Iris, from furniture destruction to eviction notices, as well as more existential ones, his looming presence constantly reminding her of her friend’s problematic choices in both life and death. Yet as Iris finds herself unexpectedly bonding with the animal, she begins to come to terms with her past, her lost friend, and her own creative inner life.
The film marks Bleecker Street’s second collaboration with Siegel & McGehee, having handled the US release of their 2021 neo-Western drama “Montana Story,” starring Haley Lu Richardson and Owen Teague.
Bleecker Street founder and CEO Andrew Karpen said: “’The Friend’ is a quintessential New York story, featuring incredible writing and emotional performances that honor the power of friendship, facing grief, and especially the singular comfort animals provide. As a New York-owned and operated company, we are the perfect home for this film and can’t wait to reteam with Scott and David to bring it to audiences next year.”
“We’re thrilled with how people have connected with our film, and we’re very so happy to be re-teaming with Bleecker Street who are such champions of both independent filmmaking and theatrical distribution. We cannot wait for them to introduce audiences to ‘The Friend’ in local cinemas next year,” said Siegel & McGehee.
The deal was negotiated by Bleecker Street’s Miranda King and Avy Eschenasy with CAA Media Finance on behalf of the filmmakers.
This year, Bleecker Street celebrated its milestone 10th anniversary, with Andrew Karpen receiving Variety’s Vanguard Award in a ceremony late last month. 2024 also saw the world premiere of Bleecker’s “Rumours” in Competition at Cannes, from directors Guy Madden, Evan Johnson and Galen Johnson, featuring an ensemble cast including Cate Blanchett and Alicia Vikander, which opened in theaters last Friday. The company’s upcoming release slate includes Toronto premiere “The Return,” based on Homer’s ancient classic “The Odyssey” and directed by Academy Award-nominee Uberto Pasolini, starring Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche, releasing theatrically on December 6; as well as “Hard Truths,” the next film from legendary auteur Mike Leigh and starring Marianne Jean-Baptiste, which premiered to critical acclaim at the Toronto International Film Festival and will have a qualifying release on December 6, ahead of a wide release on January 10, 2025.
The company also teamed up with ShivHans Pictures to release anticipated titles including cosmic love story “Love Me” starring Kristen Stewart and Steven Yeun, which premiered at this year’s Sundance and will release theatrically in January 2025; as well as Andrew Ahn’s “The Wedding Banquet,” a reimagining of the 1993 Academy Award-nominated film of the same name, starring Bowen Yang, Academy Award-nominee Lily Gladstone, Kelly Marie Tran, Academy Award-winner Yuh-jung Youn and Joan Chen.
About Bleecker Street
Bleecker Street is an independently financed studio based in New York City that was founded in August 2014 by Andrew Karpen. Bleecker has released more than 65 films and has established itself as a trusted label and champion of original and filmmaker-driven cinema, curating an impressive and lauded slate that extends across all genres. Its releases have included films from auteurs like Steven Soderbergh (“Logan Lucky,” “Unsane”) and Debra Granik (“Leave No Trace”); Oscar-nominated films including “Captain Fantastic” and “Trumbo;” and works by brilliant new voices in cinema like Academy Award-winner Guy Nattiv (2024 Oscar-nominee “Golda”), Kitty Green (“The Assistant”), Fran Kranz (Spirit Award-winner for “Mass”), and Laurel Parmet (Spirit Award-nominee for “The Starling Girl”).
With the company celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, Cannes 2024 marked the world premiere of Bleecker Street’s “Rumours” from directors Evan Johnson, Galen Johnson and Guy Maddin, featuring an ensemble cast including Cate Blanchett and Alicia Vikander. Other notable releases included comedy “The Fabulous Four” from acclaimed filmmaker Jocelyn Moorhouse, starring Bette Midler, Megan Mullally, Susan Sarandon, and Sheryl Lee Ralph; psychological sci-fi thriller “Slingshot” starring Casey Affleck, Laurence Fishburne and Emily Beecham; “The Return,” based on Homer’s ancient classic “The Odyssey” and directed by Academy Award-nominee Uberto Pasolini, starring Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche, releasing theatrically on December 6; as well as “Hard Truths,” the next film from legendary auteur Mike Leigh and starring Marianne Jean-Baptiste, which premiered to critical acclaim at the Toronto International Film Festival and will have a qualifying release on December 6, ahead of a wide release on January 10, 2025.
Recent releases have included “Treasure” from filmmaker Julia von Heinz, starring Lena Dunham and Stephen Fry, which world premiered at the Berlin Film Festival; the family dramedy “Ezra,” directed by Tony Goldwyn and starring Bobby Cannavale, Rose Byrne and Robert De Niro, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival; David and Nathan Zellner’s “Sasquatch Sunset,” which premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival; the World War II drama “One Life” starring Academy Award-winner Sir Anthony Hopkins; the space thriller “I.S.S.” starring Academy Award-winner Ariana Debose; and independent Stone Age horror film “Out of Darkness.”