Netflix has acquired worldwide rights to the upcoming movie “The Power of the Dog,” starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Elisabeth Moss.
The streaming giant bought “The Power of the Dog” from See-Saw Films’ in house sales arm Cross City Films. Variety first reported on the project earlier this month and Cross City Films launched sales at the Cannes Film Festival.
Netflix will release the film in 2021 on Netflix and in theaters. Transmission Films will be releasing theatrically in Australia and New Zealand. The deal excludes United Kingdom free TV rights, which are retained by BBC Films.
Jane Campion directed the movie, adapted from the Thomas Savage 1967 novel of the same name. It follows wealthy Montana brothers, who are two sides of one coin. Cumberbatch portrays a man who is stolid, fastidious and gentle, while his brother is graceful, brilliant and cruel. They are joint owners of the biggest ranch in the Montana valley. When Cumberbatch’s character secretly marries a local widow, portrayed by Moss, his brother wages a sadistic, relentless war to destroy her by using her effeminate son as a pawn.
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See-Saw Films and Big Shell Films/Max Films Production are producing the movie in association with Brightstar and BBC Films. The project has been developed with BBC Films, who are also backing production. See-Saw Films’ Emile Sherman and Iain Canning are also producing alongside Max Films’ Roger Frappier, Big Shell’s Jane Campion and Brightstar’s Tanya Seghatchian. BBC Films’ Rose Garnett, See-Saw’s Simon Gillis and Brightstar’s John Woodward are executive producing.
Cumberbatch recently reprised his role as Dr. Strange in the massive Marvel hit “Avengers: Endgame” and in HBO’s “Brexit.” Moss, the star of Hulu’s “The Handmaid’s Tale,” just appeared in Jordan Peele’s horror film “Us.” Campion won the Academy Award for screenplay for “The Piano” and created the limited series “Top of the Lake” and “Top of the Lake: China Girl.”
The deal was negotiated on behalf of the filmmakers and Cross City Films by Simon Gillis, COO of See-Saw Films, and attorney Craig Emanuel of Paul Hastings.