EXCLUSIVE: Netflix just closed a groundbreaking $20 million deal on Hit Man, making it the biggest deal of the year at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival. This highly anticipated Richard Linklater-directed noir comic thriller received rave reviews at Venice and was expected to fetch a major deal at the fall festivals. And it certainly delivered. Hit Man stars Glen Powell from Top Gun Maverick and Adria Arjona from Andor, who give outstanding performances as unlikely romantic partners. This film is set to catapult Powell’s career to new heights, especially since he co-wrote the script with Linklater. Netflix secured distribution rights for the US, UK, Australia/New Zealand, India, South Korea, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Singapore, Philippines, and Iceland. Rumor has it that there is also a theatrical release planned.
Heading into its final weekend, TIFF had been relatively quiet on the deal front, but Netflix managed to secure its second big deal with the Anna Kendrick-directed film Woman of the Hour for around $11 million. With this major deal settled, more deals are expected to follow. However, films that premiered elsewhere are not shown until after the first weekend at TIFF, so there are still plenty of highly praised films waiting to find homes, including some that were screened privately.
Before the premiere on Monday, there were already bids lined up for Hit Man. However, the sellers at CAA Media Finance, along with AGC Studios and Cinetic Media, decided to wait until after the premiere to start fielding offers. AGC Studios financed the film with Shiv Hans and Monarch Media, and they had already closed several international territorial deals.
Linklater and Powell, who have collaborated on three previous projects, wrote the script for Hit Man based loosely on a Texas Monthly article by Skip Hollandsworth. The film explores the life of Gary Johnson, a school teacher who leads a double life as a phony hit man for the New Orleans Police Department. Powell’s portrayal of the teacher as a straight-laced, dull guy who transforms into a charming and dangerous hit man is captivating. He manages to convince numerous individuals to hire him for murder, leading to arrests and convictions. However, things become complicated when he meets a mysterious and beautiful young woman (Arjona) who asks him to kill her suffocating and abusive husband. The hit man, smitten with her, tries to dissuade her and they soon develop a romantic connection. As the story unfolds, he must grapple with the dilemma of concealing his true identity from the woman he is falling for, all while facing the consequences of his actions.
Hit Man is a co-production between AGC Studios, Shivhans Pictures, and Monarch Media, in association with A Barnstorm Co., Aggregate Films Production, Cinetic Media, and Detour Film. Alongside Powell and Arjona, the film also features Austin Amelio, Retta, Sanjay Rao, Molly Bernard, and Evan Holtzman. The producers include Mike Blizzard, Linklater, Powell, Jason Bateman, and Michael Costigan from Aggregate Films. The executive producers are Stuart Ford, Zach Garrett, Miguel A. Palos Jr., John Sloss from Cinetic Media, Shivani Rawat and Julie Goldstein from ShivHans Pictures, Vicky Patel, Steve Barnett, Alan Powell from Monarch Media, and Scott Brown and Megan Creydt from Texas Monthly. The film was shot in New Orleans.
The deal for Hit Man was brokered by CAA Media Finance and Cinetic Media with Netflix and AGC’s Business & Legal Affairs’ Anant Tamirisa.
