Lucien Laviscount Joins Daisy Ridley in The Good Samaritan
Lucien Laviscount has joined Daisy Ridley as the male lead of the action-thriller The Good Samaritan, which is set to begin production this fall, Variety reported.
The film is directed by Pierre Morel from an original screenplay by Matthew Ian Cirulnick. It also stars Josh Duhamel and Sharlto Copley. Highland Film Group is handling international sales and has placed the title on its TIFF market slate.
Ridley plays Dr. Rosalind Carver. Laviscount plays her husband, Matt. Copley plays pirate leader Langbore, while Duhamel plays ex-mercenary Sean Fuller.
Morel is the French director behind Taken, the Liam Neeson action hit that established his name in Hollywood, according to Highland Film Group. Cirulnick wrote Rambo: Last Blood. The producers on The Good Samaritan are Mark Canton of Canton Entertainment, Oakhurst Entertainment, Renee Tab of Sentient Entertainment, and David Lipper and Bobby Daly of Latigo Films. Financing comes from Robert MacLean for Tribune Pictures.
The business side is already moving. International sales, the licensing of distribution rights country by country, is being organised by Highland Film Group, Variety reported. That process lets independent films secure cinemas around the world long before cameras roll, with local distributors buying the right to release the finished film in their own territory.
In Europe, Highland has closed deals with Splendid Film in Germany, Vertigo Releasing in the U.K., Key 2 Media in Spain, Blue Swan Entertainment in Italy, Three Lines Pictures in Benelux, Spentzos Film in Greece, Cinemundo in Portugal and Mediasquad in Eastern Europe. Further sales cover ATV in Turkey, Falcon Films in the Middle East, Lionsgate in India, Prima Entertainment in Indonesia, MovieCloud in Taiwan, California Filmes in Latin America, VVS Films in Canada, Filmfinity in South Africa and PictureWorks for airline rights.
In the United States, CAA Media Finance and UTA Independent Film Group are co-representing domestic rights, the licence to release the film at home. Duhamel and Copley were first announced alongside Ridley in February. Laviscount now completes the central quartet.
For anyone following the film, the picture is now clearer. The four principal roles are cast. The director, writer, producers and financier are in place. Buyers in more than a dozen territories are already aboard. Next step is the shoot.
