Relativity Media announced today it has struck a co-production and co-financing deal with Luc Besson’s (Taken, Transporter) EuropaCorp on the upcoming films Malavita and Three Days to Kill. The companies will work in tandem on both projects throughout the creative and production process.
Out of the gate, Besson will helm Malavita, a darkly comedic actioner starring Oscar winner Robert De Niro. The script is adapted by Besson from the book “Badfellas” by author Tonino Benacquista. Pre-production will begin in July with filming set for August at La Cité du Cinéma, where the brand new Studios de Paris are located. Additional shooting will take place in Normandy, France and New York. The film will bow in 2013 with Relativity handling US distribution as well as working with its foreign output partners on the film’s release in the UK, Canada, Australia, South Africa, Spain, Greece, Thailand and CIS. EuropaCorp will take on distribution in France and handle international sales.
Malavita is the story of the Manzonis, a notorious mafia family who gets relocated to Normandy, France under the witness protection program. While they do their best to fit in, old habits die hard and they soon find themselves handling things the “family” way.
The second film under the deal is Three Days to Kill, a tense, gripping action tale with a sense of humor from a script by Besson and Adi Hasak (From Paris With Love). Secret Service Agent Ethan Runner discovers he’s dying and decides to retire in order to reconnect with his estranged family. But when the Secret Service offers him access to an experimental drug that could save his life in exchange for one last assignment, he soon finds himself trying to juggle his family, his mission, and the drug’s hallucinatory side-effects.
“With the pairing of Besson and De Niro, ‘Malavita’ is a great addition to our growing slate. We’re thrilled to be getting into business with EuropaCorp on both films and the prospect of more in the future,” said Relativity’s President Tucker Tooley.
