*LOS ANGELES – David Oyelwo’s family adventure film, THE WATER MAN, has been acquired by RLJE Films, a business unit of AMC Networks, for North America, and by Netflix for the rest of the world.
The film is the directorial debut of acclaimed actor David Oyelowo (Selma), which he also stars in, and is produced by Oprah Winfrey’s Harpo Films, ShivHans Pictures, and Yoruba Saxon.
In North America the film is expected to be released day-and-date in theaters and PVOD on May 7, 2021 and Netflix will release the film internationally later this year. The film had its world premiere at the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival to much critical praise and also opened this year’s Urbanworld Film Festival.
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THE WATER MAN, a Black List script written by Emma Needell, also stars Rosario Dawson (“Luke Cage”), Lonnie Chavis (“This is Us”), Amiah Miller (War For the Planet of the Apes), Alfred Molina (Spider-Man 2) and Maria Bello (“NCIS”). In THE WATER MAN, Gunner (Chavis) sets out on a quest to save his ill mother (Dawson) by searching for a mythic figure who possesses the secret to immortality, the Water Man. After enlisting the help of a mysterious local girl, Jo (Miller), they journey together into the remote Wild Horse forest — but the deeper they venture, the stranger and more dangerous the forest becomes. Their only hope for rescue is Gunner’s father (Oyelowo), who will stop at nothing to find them and in the process will discover who his son really is.
“While in some ways this film is a father and son story, at its core it’s also a love letter to mothers everywhere and is dedicated to my own. To be able to share my directorial debut, THE WATER MAN, with the world through the hands of RLJE Films and Netflix is a dream come true for me,” said Oyelowo.
THE WATER MAN is produced by Oyelowo (A United Kingdom), Carla Gardini (“Delilah”), Shivani Rawat (Wander Darkly) and Monica Levinson (Golden Globe nominees Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, The Trial of The Chicago 7) and executive produced by Oprah Winfrey (The Color Purple), Darren M. Demetre (Lean on Pete), Connor Flanagan (Wander Darkly) and Emma Needell.
ABOUT RLJE FILMS
RLJE Films’ recent features include Color Out of Space starring Nicolas Cage and Joely Richardson and written and directed by Richard Stanley; the critically acclaimed horror film The Dark And The Wicked from director Bryan Bertino; Steve Byrne’s The Opening Act from producers Vince Vaughn and Peter Billingsley; David Ayer’s The Tax Collector and Adam Egypt Mortimer’s Archenemy. Upcoming films include Sion Sono’s 2021 Sundance Film Festival premiere Prisoners of the Ghostland starring Nicolas Cage and Sofia Boutella and Shoplifters of the World from director Stephen Kijak. us.rljentertainment.com.
ABOUT AMC NETWORKS
AMC Networks is a global entertainment company known for its popular and critically-acclaimed content. Its portfolio of brands includes AMC, BBC AMERICA (operated through a joint venture with BBC Studios), IFC, SundanceTV, WE tv, IFC Films, and a number of fast-growing streaming services, including the AMC+ premium streaming bundle, Acorn TV, Shudder, Sundance Now and ALLBLK (formerly branded “UMC”). AMC Studios, the Company’s in-house studio, production and distribution operation, is behind award-winning owned series and franchises, including The Walking Dead, the highest-rated series in cable history. The Company also operates AMC Networks International, its international programming business, and Levity Entertainment Group, its production services and comedy venues business.
ABOUT NETFLIX
Netflix is one of the world’s leading entertainment services with 204 million paid memberships in over 190 countries enjoying TV series, documentaries and feature films across a wide variety of genres and languages. Members can watch as much as they want, anytime, anywhere, on any internet-connected screen. Members can play, pause and resume watching, all without commercials or commitments.
ABOUT SHIVHANS PICTURES
ShivHans Pictures, founded by producer Shivani Rawat, is a production and finance company creating unique and compelling feature films outside the Hollywood studio model. The company strives to streamline the financing process in an effort to fully support the visions of independent filmmakers while collaborating with top-tier talent. Recent ShivHans Pictures projects include Wander Darkly, written and directed by Tara Miele and starring Sienna Miller and Diego Luna, which premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival and was acquired by Lionsgate and recently released in theaters and VOD as well as Aaron Sorkin’s The Trial of Chicago 7 for which Shivani Rawat served as an Executive Producer and is now available on Netflix. Upcoming projects include The Water Man, which recently premiered at the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival, produced alongside Oprah Winfrey’s Harpo Films, starring and featuring the directorial debut of David Oyelowo; and The Ice Road starring Liam Neeson and Laurence Fishburne, written and directed by Jonathan Hensleigh, produced and co-financed alongside CODE Entertainment. ShivHans is also partnering with actress Issa Rae’s production company ColorCreative to develop Badmash, a Bollywood-meets-mafia story from writer Sneha Koorse. Previous films from ShivHans Pictures include Danny Collins, the Academy Award-nominated Trumbo, the Academy Award-nominated Captain Fantastic, and Beirut, all distributed by Bleecker Street and The Polka King, released by Netflix worldwide. In 2019, ShivHans Pictures expanded into distribution with Bleecker Street, releasing films including Hotel Mumbai and Brian Banks, which ShivHans also produced. For information about ShivHans Pictures and its upcoming slate of films, please visit www.ShivHans.com and follow the company on Instagram/Facebook/Twitter @ShivHansPics.
ABOUT HARPO FILMS
Harpo Films, Inc is the production division of Oprah Winfrey’s multimedia company Harpo, Inc., producing acclaimed feature films and scripted television programming. Past features include the Academy Award-nominated “Selma” starring David Oyelowo and Golden Globe-nominated “The Hundred-Foot Journey” starring Helen Mirren. Harpo Films is producing the musical feature “The Color Purple” with Warner Bros., “An American Marriage,” adapted from the 2018 Oprah’s Book Club title of the same name by Tayari Jones, “The Water Dancer” adaptation from Ta-Nehisi Coates with MGM, and the “The 1619 Project” from Nikole Hannah-Jones with Lionsgate. Recent television projects include OWN’s critically acclaimed series “Queen Sugar” and “David Makes Man” with Warner Bros., hit drama series “Greenleaf” with Lionsgate, the Emmy-nominated HBO film “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” starring Oprah Winfrey, and the upcoming series “Delilah” with Warner Bros. The company produces premium film, television, digital and social media content and is based in Los Angeles.
ABOUT YORUBA/SAXON PRODUCTIONS
Yoruba/Saxon Productions, founded by David and Jessica Oyelowo, is focused on creating values-based content, across all platforms and for all quadrants, with an aim to shift the culture and color outside the lines. As artists and filmmakers, we are committed to expressing our love of storytelling and passion for people through entertainment for a global audience. Yoruba Saxon’s film and television projects include: Nightingale (HBO), Captive (Paramount), A United Kingdom (Fox Searchlight), Come Away (Relativity Media), Five Nights in Maine (FilmRise), the upcoming Solitary (BRON Studios) and First Gen (Disney+).
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