eOne takes Jeff Nichols’ Midnight Special for UK

eOne has secured UK rights to Jeff Nichols’ anticipated next feature Midnight Special, which as previously reported, is being backed and largely distributed by Warner Bros.

Regular collaborators Nichols and actor Michael Shannon are re-teaming on the sci-fi chase film which Nichols has written and will direct. eOne acquired from FilmNation.

The duo have worked together on all three of Nichols’ directorial outings - Shotgun Stories, Take Shelter and Mud, which eOne released in the UK on May 10.

Midnight Special marks the acclaimed directors’ first studio film.

Terrence Malick regular Sarah Green, who also produced Mud, will produce with Brian Kavanaugh-Jones. Both were executives on Take Shelter. Glen Basner and Christos V. Konstantakopoulos are executive producers.

Speaking at Sundance London, Nichols described Midnight Special as a “sci-fi chase film”.

“It’s more grounded than [Mud]. I really wanted to make a 1980s John Carpenter film like Starman. I love the way those films look.”

Among eOne’s banner acquisitions from Cannes was Princess Diana biopic Diana, which is due to be the company’s widest US release.

Among around 20 theatrical acquisitions across its territories, the group secured Robert Redford’s comedy A Walk in the Woods for Australia from IM Global and Niki Caro’s buzzed about The Zookeeper’s Wife for Spain and Benelux from Panorama.

The outfit also locked in multi-territory deals on former Alliance titles including anticipated Saul Dibb drama Suite Francaise and Ryan Gosling’s directorial debut How to Catch a Monster.