Star Director Danny Boyle has signed a three-year exclusive production deal with Fox Searchlight and Pathe Pictures. Both production houses were key players in the sensational success of Boyle’s 2008 hit Slumdog Millionaire.
Fox Searchlight and Pathe Pictures will co-finance and co-produce Boyle’s future films with Searchlight handling the domestic distribution and Pathe distributing in Europe.
Slumdog Millionaire was one of the most successful independent films ever released but was almost released straight to DVD without a domestic theatrical release until saved by Fox Searchlight at the last moment.
Fox Searchlight continues to impress with its lineup of unique independent films such as The Wrestler and (500) Days of Summer. Slumdog Millionaire is Searchlight’s 2nd highest grossing film ever pulling in $141 Million narrowly missing Juno at $143 Million. The Mumbai fairytale’s unexpected financial success and sweep of the 2008 Oscars definitely secured Boyle’s filmmaking future and Searchlight was quick to seal the deal.
Boyle has not announced his next project yet. According to Slashfilm, He has recently bought the screen rights to another Mumbai based property. Simon Beaufoy, Academy award-winning writer of Slumdog Millionaire, has been brought on board for the screenplay adaptation of Suketu Mehta’s 2004 book Maximum City: Bombay Lost and Found. Boyle has been quoted to calling the book his “bible” during the production of Slumdog Millionaire using it for insight and inspiration into the city and people of Mumbai.
I’m definitely looking forward to any of Boyle’s future films. Do you think staying with Searchlight was a good move?
Source: Variety
