EXCLUSIVE: The TIFF Midnight Madness movie, Boy Kills World, has been picked up by Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions. The action movie starring Bill Skarsgård, Michelle Dockery, Jessica Rothe, and Famke Janssen has set a wide theatrical release for April 26.
Directed by German director Moritz Mohr, and produced by Sam Raimi and Roy Lee, Skarsgård stars as Boy, a deaf-mute with a vivid imagination, driven by his inner voice, one which he co-opted from his favorite childhood video game, avows revenge after his family is murdered by Hilda Van Der Koy (Janssen), the deranged matriarch of a corrupt post-apocalyptic dynasty that left the boy orphaned, deafened, and voiceless. Boy trains with a mysterious shaman (Ruhian) to become an instrument of death and is set loose on the eve of the annual culling of dissidents. Bedlam ensues as Boy commits bloody martial arts mayhem, inciting a wrath of carnage and blood-letting. As he tries to get his bearings in this delirious realm, Boy soon falls in with a desperate resistance group, all the while bickering with the apparent ghost of his rebellious little sister.
“When we saw Boy Kills World at TIFF’s Midnight Madness we were blown away by the crazy action sequences and the terrific cast. Audiences are in for a wild ride,” commented Roadside Attractions Co-Presidents Howard Cohen and Eric d’Arbeloff.
“From the opening frames, Boy Kills World catapulted the Lionsgate team into a completely bonkers world masterfully created by Sam Raimi, Roy Lee, Bill Skarsgård and the incredibly dynamic cast and crew.” said Lauren Bixby, Lionsgate’s SVP of Acquisitions and Co-Productions. “We could not be more excited to partner with our friends at Roadside to bring the delightful insanity to US audiences everywhere.”
Raimi added “Mohr brings a distinct visual style and an unbridled imagination to the screen, creating an original, outrageous, and visceral thrill ride. Boy Kills World‘s eclectic cast, eye-popping stunt sequences, and deranged sense of humor will blow audiences away.”
“We could not think of a better partner to bring our audacious and entirely original film to the big screen than the company that has given us the John Wick and Hunger Games franchises,” said Wayne Fitzjohn and Simon Swart. “Noted for bucking convention and blowing traditional distribution norms out of the window, Lionsgate and Roadside are the perfect team for Boy Kills World
“Boy Kills World is one of the most exhilarating action films I’ve ever seen and I’m thrilled for audiences to get to experience it in theaters. Lionsgate and Roadside are the perfect home for it,” continued pic’s producer Alex Lebovici.
Pic also stars Brett Gelman (Stranger Things, Fleabag), Isaiah Mustafa (It: Chapter Two, Shadowhunters), martial arts master Yayan Ruhian (John Wick Chapter 3- Parabellum, Star War Episode VII – The Force Awakens), Nicholas and Cameron Crovetti (Big Little Lies, The Boys), and Quinn Copeland (Punky Brewster), with Andrew Koji (Bullet Train, Snake Eyes) and Sharlto Copley, (District 9, Elysium).
The pic is a production between Nthibah Pictures, Raimi Productions, Vertigo Entertainment, and Hammerstone Studios Production from a screenplay by Arend Remmers and Tyler Burton Smith (Child’s Play) with a screen story by Mohr and Remmers. Raimi, Zainab Azizi, Lee, Wayne Fitzjohn, Simon Swart, Lebovici, Stuart Manashil and Dan Kagan serve as producers. EPs are Sipho Nkosi, Mxolisi Mgojo, Humphrey Mathe, Reza Brojerdi, Christian Mercuri, Moritz Mohr and Andrew Childs.
Nthibah Pictures’s Swart negotiated the deal with Lauren Bixby, Lionsgate’s SVP of Acquisitions and Co-Productions on behalf of Lionsgate and Co-President Howard Cohen, Roadside Attractions. Nthibah Pictures is represented by Tom Ara of DLA Piper.