Sales for the upcoming noir thriller, Marlowe, are set to be handled by production companies Storyboard Media and CAA Media Finance ahead of the Cannes virtual market, Deadline is reporting. The film has potential to draw in high interest from distributors, as it’s set to star renowned action star, Liam Neeson as the iconic title character, detective Philip Marlowe.
Marlowe will reunite the Academy Award-nominated actor with his Michael Collins and Breakfast On Pluto director, Oscar-winner Neil Jordan. The upcoming drama was written William Monahan, who won an Academy Award for scribing The Departed.
Before the upcoming movie, the eponymous protagonist initially appeared in short stories and novels by author Raymond Chandler, which were published between the 1930s and 1950s. Marlowe is the latest film adaptation of the book series, with Neeson being the next actor to portray the title character. Other actors who have played Marlowe in previous screen adaptations include Humphrey Bogart, James Garner, Danny Glover and James Caan.
The upcoming adaptation is specifically based on John Banville’s 2014 novel, The Black-Eyed Blonde, which is being developed for the screen with Screen Ireland. The Irish writer wrote the novel under his pseudonym, Benjamin Black, in order to continue the legacy of Chandler’s iconic character.
Marlowe will be set in the 1950, and is se to follow the title character as he’s hired to find the ex-lover of a glamorous heiress. It initially appears to be an open and shut case, but Marlowe soon finds himself embedded in the harrowing depths of Hollywood’s film industry. He’s subsequently drawn into the troubled relationship of a legendary Hollywood actress and her ambitious daughter.
The thriller, which was first revealed to be in development in 2017, is expected to begin filming in October in L.
A. and Europe. Ahead of principal photography, Storyboard Media producer Elisabeth Costa de Beauregard will be handling Marlowe‘s international sales, which will be introduced to buyers during Cannes. CAA Media Finance will represent the drama’s domestic sales.