Spyglass Media Group and Eagle Pictures Team Up to Produce “Perfect Strangers,” The English Language Adaptation of the Italian Hit Film “Perfetti Sconosciuti”
Issa Rae Set to Write, Produce and Star in the Comedy
LOS ANGELES — Spyglass Media Group, LLC (“Spyglass,”) and Eagle Pictures have teamed up to produce “Perfect Strangers,” the English language adaptation of Paolo Genovese’s Italian hit feature film “Perfetti Sconosciuti” and attached Issa Rae (“Insecure”) to write, produce and star in the comedy.
Rae, who has become one of Hollywood’s most in-demand actor-creators, will bring her very own signature style, adapting the concept for a diverse global audience. Rae received critical praise as well as Emmy and Golden Globe nominations for her hit HBO comedy series, “Insecure,” and got her start producing, directing and starring in her own webseries, “The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl.” Up next, Rae is set to star in Universal’s romantic drama, “The Photograph,” which arrives in theaters in February 2020, and Paramount’s “Lovebirds” (2020).
The story centers around a dinner party where a group of friends decide to play a risky game where they place their phones face-up on the table and agree to make all texts and phone calls public in an attempt to prove they have nothing to hide. The comedy about friendship, love and betrayal forces the friends to confront and discover they may actually be “perfect strangers.”
“Perfetti Sconosciuti” was released in 2016 and sparked numerous local language remakes including in such countries as China, Spain, Greece, Russia, Hungary, France, Korea and Turkey. The Italian film won two David di Donatello Awards for best film and best screenplay as well as the best screenplay for an International Narrative Feature at the Tribeca Film Festival.
“Perfect Strangers” is slated to commence principal photography in Q1 2020 and will be produced by Spyglass, Eagle Pictures, and 3 Marys Entertainment, alongside Rae. Issa Rae Productions’ Montrel Mckay will executive produce. Chris Stone, Vice President, Development & Production, will oversee production on behalf of Spyglass and Tarak Ben Ammar, Chairman and Owner of Eagle Pictures, will oversee the film on behalf of Eagle.
Said Stone, “Issa is the perfect choice to adapt Paolo Genovese's brilliant film given her bold and comedic authenticity. As one of the most sought-after creative talents, we are excited to see Issa's vision come to life.“
Said Ben Ammar, “I am proud to be working alongside our partners at Spyglass and the immensely talented Issa Rae on this socially resonant and provocative comedy that not only became a success in Europe, but went on to capture the attention of audiences around the globe.”
“I’m really looking forward to bringing this funny and compelling story to a new demographic and could not be happier about partnering with the Spyglass team to make it happen. I loved the original film and think the story will resonate with audiences here as well,” stated Rae.
Spyglass launched as a partnership between Gary Barber and Lantern Entertainment Co-Presidents Andy Mitchell and Milos Brajovic, and is committed to creating entertainment across all platforms for worldwide audiences. The company has strategic investment backing from Warner Bros. Pictures, leaders in the motion picture industry; Eagle Pictures, the largest independent distributor in Italy; and Cineworld Group, the second largest theater chain in the world. Spyglass is home to more than 250 film library titles, scripted and unscripted television series, including Academy Award winners “The King’s Speech” and “The Artist;” box office hits “The Upside,” “Inglourious Basterds,” “Silver Linings Playbook,” “The Hateful Eight,” “Django Unchained,” “Spy Kids” and “Paddington;” genre franchises “Hellraiser” and “Scream,” and the television series, “Project Runway.”
Rae is represented by UTA, 3 Arts Entertainment and attorney John Meigs.