Lionsgate stated on Monday that it has bought the worldwide distribution rights to the action comedy “The Killer’s Game,” starring Dave Bautista and directed by JJ Perry.
“The Killer’s Game” is based on Jay Bonansinga’s book of the same title. Dave Bautista will play Joe Flood, an assassin who has just been told he has a painful, terminal illness. Flood doesn’t want to die slowly and in pain, so he orders a hit on himself, only to find out he was given the wrong diagnosis and is healthy. Andrew Lazar of Mad Chance and Steve Richards of Endurance Media will produce it, and Endurance Media will handle the financial aspect.
Rand Ravich and Simon Kinberg, who wrote the “X-Men” movies, are the scriptwriters for the movie. James Coyne has recently made changes to the script. Lionsgate will start selling tickets for the movie at the Cannes Film Festival this month before filming starts this summer.
We are so thrilled to be making‘The Killer’s Game’ with Lionsgate and Endurance,
says producer Andrew Lazar.
We have searched far and wide and we finally found the perfect Joe Flood in Dave Bautista, who balances compelling action and incredible comic timing better than anyone else. And with JJ Perry at the helm, we know this film will deliver the kind of wholly original and unique action that global audiences crave.
Lionsgate is the perfect home for this project,
added Richards.
They have consistently proven their ability to connect action audiences with the best films in the genre. We are believers that The Killer’s Game is the perfect mix of action and comedy, and right now, there’s no one better at threading that needle than Dave Bautista. We can’t wait to get started.
Andrew and Steve brought us a package we couldn’t refuse,
said Nathan Kahane, president of Lionsgate Motion Picture Group.
We foresee strong interest from the marketplace, and we’re confident that its mix of bold action, star power, and fun writing will thrill audiences everywhere.
Dave Bautista and Jonathan Meisner will run Dogbone Entertainment as executive producers. Jake Katofsky and Vanessa Humphrey will co-produce the movie. Kia Jam is also a producer. Scott Lambert is the executive producer. John Biondo and Christopher Davis were the deal negotiators.
Dave Bautista can be seen in “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” as Drax for the last time, and he will also be in “Dune: Part Two” by Denis Villeneuve this November. Perry, a veteran stunt coordinator who has worked with “John Wick” director Chad Stahelski for a long time, directed his first movie, “Day Shift,” which starred Jamie Foxx and Snoop Dogg.
CAA, Meisner Entertainment Group, and the law firm Meisner Entertainment Group and Jackoway Austen Tyerman Wertheimer Mandelbaum Morris Bernstein Trattner & Klein all represent Bautista. Perry is represented by WME, whose manager is Holly Jeter, along with Sloane, Offer, Weber & Dern.
