Christina Hendricks will lead the psychological thriller “Reckoner,” which will be sold at the Cannes Film Festival this month.
The project is written and directed by Nissar Modi (“Z for Zacharian”), who will be making his big screen directorial debut.
In the film, an affluent woman’s carefully constructed life is disrupted by a young man connected to a tightly-held secret from her past.
The film is based on a short story by late writer Rachel Ingalls and will be produced by XYZ Films and Two & Two Pictures, with XYZ Films financing. XYZ Films has also added “Reckoner” to its New Visions slate of films, with world sales launching in Cannes.
The recently launched New Visions is designed to spotlight new voices alongside established talent that are striking a new path in the international space. “Reckoner” will be the first package in pre-production to run through the new slate.
Hendricks is best known for her role as Joan Harris on the AMC series “Mad Men.” She also starred in the NBC series “Good Girls,” and has appeared in films such as “Neon Demon,” “Drive” and “American Woman.” She voiced the role of Gabby Gabby in “Toy Story 4.” She will next be seen in the Apple+ series “The Buccaneers.”
Meanwhile, Modi is the screenwriter of “Breaking at the Edge” and “Z for Zachariah.” He has written scripts for actors and filmmakers including Will Smith, Leonardo DiCaprio, Gary Ross, Matt Reeves and David Mackenzie.
“Reckoner” is part of Two & Two and XYZ’s partnership to produce films from first and second-time genre filmmakers from underrepresented demographics. Previously, XYZ and Two & Two collaborated on Babak Anvari’s “Under the Shadow” and “I Came By,” as well as the forthcoming “History of Evil,” written and directed by Bo Mirhosseni.
XYZ will launch the New Visions slate in Cannes with Directors’ Fortnight selection “In Flames,” a Pakistani-Canadian horror film directed by Zarrar Kahn and executive produced by Shant Joshi. Additional titles in the initial New Visions slate include Tribeca Official Selection “The Seeding” from director Barnaby Clay; Czech science fiction title “Restore Point,” directed by Robert Hloz and produced by Jan Kallista, which will have footage screened at the Marché du Film as part of the Fantastic 7 lineup; and Paul Duane’s upcoming Irish folk horror “All You Need is Death.”
Said Modi: “I’m delighted to be working with the immensely talented Christina Hendricks on this haunting tale of guilt, obsession and revenge. It’s a film I’ve been envisioning for many years ever since I read Rachel Ingalls’ remarkable short story, and am excited to finally bring it to life thanks to the ever-supportive teams at XYZ Films and Two and Two.”
Added Mila Cottray, head of production and finance for Two & Two Pictures: “We’re thrilled to be working with this wonderful team on ‘Reckoner,’ a film which reminds us of many of our favorite psychological thrillers, like ‘Cape Fear’ or ‘Nocturnal Animals,’ but offers a stylized and contemporary spin on the genre that is distinctly Nissar.”
Todd Brown, head of international acquisitions for XYZ Films, noted: “We couldn’t be more excited to be working alongside Nissar to bring his debut feature to the world. We’ve been enormous fans of his work and with ‘Reckoner’ he’s delivered a script that is gripping, engaging and deeply challenging. It’s exactly what we would hope for from him.”
Hendricks is repped by UTA, Independent Talent Group and link Entertainment. Modi is repped by 42 and VanderKloot Law.
