Briarcliff Entertainment has acquired the American domestic distribution rights to Magazine Dreams, Deadline is reporting. The company plans to release the drama during the first quarter of 2025, but an exact date has yet to be announced.
The news comes after the project received critical acclaim following its world premiere at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. The movie went on to be honored with the U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Creative Vision at the festival.
Searchlight Pictures won the drama’s distribution rights in an auction over several other bidders, including Neon, Sony Pictures Classic and HBO, after its premiere. However, the studio later scrapped its plans to release the film late last year. Magazine Dreams‘ rights were given back to the filmmakers, who were then allowed to look for a new distributor.
Following its premiere, the movie also received early Oscar buzz for its lead actor, Jonathan Majors, for his intense portrayal of a troubled aspiring bodybuilder. The once celebrated actor transformed his body for the role of Killian Maddox by eating 6100 calories daily. He also trained six days per week for over four months to physically transform himself into the character, who was determined to become a champion bodybuilder.
The character is also prone to dark moods, so he has trouble establishing human connections. His obsession for success was fueled by his fixation with a champion bodybuilder.
Before Magazine Dreams‘ release, Majors’ last movie role was in last year’s boxing sequel, Creed III. He also received attention for his roles in The Last Black Man in San Francisco, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantimania and the HBO limited series, Lovecraft Country, for which he was nominated for an Emmy.
The actor was booked to play the villainous central figure in the next Avengers films. However, he was eventually dropped from the role by Marvel Studios when he was arrested last year for physically assaulting his ex-girlfriend Grace Jabbari. He was later found guilty of two misdemeanor counts of assault and harassment.
Majors initially seemed defiant about the situation in the press, which led to the public’s shift in narrative about Magazine Dreams. As a result, Searchlight delayed and then dropped the drama from its schedule.
Briarcliff founder, Tom Ortenberg in part decided to take on the distribution rights for Magazine Dreams after embracing the strong performances by its supporting cast, which includes Haley Bennett, Taylour Paige and four-time Mr. Universe Mike O’Hearn. Ortenberg also appreciated the filmmaking voice of the project’s up-and-coming writer-director, Elijah Bynum.
“Magazine Dreams is a visceral experience that challenges the perceptions of ambition and identity,” Ortenberg told Deadline in a statement confirming the deal. “Elijah’s film made a well-deserved splash in Sundance and Briarcliff is looking forward to taking his story to the big screen across the country in early 2025.
“Jonathan Majors’ transcendent performance as Killian Maddox will undoubtedly be remembered as one of the most compelling and transformative roles in recent cinema history,” the studio executive continued. “We are honored to bring this extraordinary work to theaters nationwide, inviting audiences to witness a story that will resonate long after the credits roll.”
The movie was produced by Jennifer Fox, Dan Gilroy, Jeffrey Soros and Simon Horsman. The drama’s executive producers include Majors for his company, Tall Street Productions, and Luke Rodgers and Andrew Blau for Los Angeles Media Fund.
Fox said the producers are “thrilled to be working with Tom again after a terrific collaboration on Nightcrawler,” which Gilroy directed. The hit 2014 dark thriller starred Jake Gyllenhaal as an ambulance-chasing videographer.
Soros also commented: “Tom has made a career of championing compelling, boundary-pushing films and filmmakers that stand the test of time, so we couldn’t have stronger partners to release Magazine Dreams than him and the great team at Briarcliff.”
The company’s acquisition of Magazine Dreams comes after the distributor secured the rights for the Donald Trump-Roy Cohn coming-of-age drama The Apprentice. While conglomerate-connected distributors shunned the film after its provocative Cannes debut, Briarcliff embraced it. The company will release the film next week, on October 11.
The Apprentice shows the lessons an aspiring real estate magnate learned after being taken under the wing of the reptilian lawyer. The latter was once the right-hand man for Sen. Joseph McCarthy in the sensationalized communist witch hunt.
Ortenberg also distributed the 2015 biographical drama, Spotlight, which chronicled the Boston Globe’s expose on the scandalous coverup of child molestation by the Catholic Church. The movie went on to win the Oscar for Best Picture in 2016.
The new deal to distribute Magazine Dreams was negotiated by CAA Media Finance on behalf of the filmmakers, and by Ortenberg, Jessica Rose and Danielle Goodman Strong on behalf of Briarcliff Entertainment.
If you liked this article, please share your comment below.