Foresight Unlimited and Envision Entertainment have most recently collaborated on Wahlberg and Washington’s actioner 2 GUNS but they will once again join forces to produce and finance an adaptation of Will Scully‘s bestselling novel, ‘Once a Pilgrim’. The film will be retitled as THE ENGLISHMAN and will be a ‘real-time’ set thriller centred on a former SAS officer-turned-mercenary, who gets caught up in a military coup in South Africa where he single-handedly takes on the enemy until he can get the innocent civilians to safety.
THE ENGLISHMAN will have relatively modest $30 million budget with A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD and MAX PAYNE’s much-maligned John Moore directing from a screenplay by TERMINATOR 2’s William Wisher. Shooting is scheduled for South Africa early next year. We’ll bring you casting details as they’re announced. The press release below gives all the details.
FORESIGHT UNLIMITED AND ENVISION ENTERTAINMENT TO PRODUCE AND FINANCE ‘THE ENGLISHMAN’
‘A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD’ DIRECTOR JOHN MOORE SET TO HELM
Los Angeles, CA (August 8, 2013) – Foresight Unlimited and Envision Entertainment who previously collaborated on the current box office hit, 2 GUNS, produced by Marc Platt and Emmett/Furla and starring Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg, have come aboard to produce and finance THE ENGLISHMAN. Blockbuster director John Moore (A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD, BEHIND ENEMY LINES) is attached to helm the film from a screenplay written by William Wisher (TERMINATOR 2: JUDGMENT DAY). Foresight Unlimited will also be handling worldwide sales for the film.
Mark Damon will produce the $30M action film alongside James Gibb, Benedict Carver, Tim Peternel, and Moore.
THE ENGLISHMAN was developed by London-based Derby Street Films. Derby Street’s Nicola Horlick and Rachel Green are executive producing, together with Shaun Redick, Ray Mansfield, Ash Shah, Chris Hanley, Peter Veverka, and Foresight’s President, Tamara Birkemoe. Envision Entertainment’s Stepan Martirosyan, Vitaly Grigoriants, and Remington Chase will also be executive producers on the film.
Set to shoot in South Africa early next year, THE ENGLISHMAN is a true story based on the book “Once a Pilgrim” by Will Scully. It unfolds in real time as Scully, an ex-SAS officer turned mercenary, gets caught up in a military coup in Africa. Trapped in a hotel together with thousands of innocent civilians and completely surrounded by hostile rebels, he single-handedly takes on the enemy until he can get all the civilians safely evacuated.
THE ENGLISHMAN represents the fifth collaboration between Foresight and the Envision partners, Stepan Martirosyan, Vitaly Grigoriants, and Remington Chase. In addition to the upcoming LONE SURVIVOR, directed by Peter Berg, and also starring Mark Wahlberg, and set to release in December this year by Universal, they are preparing the upcoming SPINNING GOLD, starring Justin Timberlake, which is set to go early next year. The two companies have also just completed production on Castle Rock’s, AND SO IT GOES, helmed by Rob Reiner, and starring Michael Douglas and Diane Keaton.
“We are delighted to be teaming up with Derby Street Films to bring this amazing true story based on Will Scully’s book to a worldwide movie audience,” commented both Damon and Martirosyan.
“THE ENGLISHMAN is one of those rare stories, the details and circumstance of which are so bizarre and mesmerizing, it created a compulsion in us to tell it,” said Moore. “Bill Wisher and I are delighted to be in business with Derby Street and Foresight on this film: they see what we see, they want the movie to be all it can be.”
“Will Scully’s story is extraordinary and it’s very exciting to have John Moore on board as director,” said Horlick. “This is exactly the type of commercial movie that Derby Street Films plans to keep developing for the big screen.”
Moore made his directorial debut with 20th Century Fox’s action adventure BEHIND ENEMY LINES, starring Owen Wilson and Gene Hackman. He continued to collaborate with the studio on films that include THE OMEN, MAX PAYNE and A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD, which earned over $300 million worldwide.
Wisher has collaborated frequently with Moore. His credits include: TERMINATOR 2: JUDGMENT DAY, JUDGE DREDD, EXORCIST: THE BEGINNING and DOMINION: PREQUEL TO THE EXORCIST.
With casting underway, Tricia Wood is onboard as the casting agent for the film.
Redick and Mansfield negotiated on behalf of Derby Street Films. Moore is repped by Paradigm.
