Laurence Fishburne and Clifton Collins Jr. have been tapped to star in Frank & Louis, a new drama being developed by Participant, Zodiac Pictures and Tyler Perry‘s Peachtree & Vine Productions. Swiss-Italian filmmaker Petra Volpe (The Divine Order) will direct from a script she has written alongside German writer Esther Bernstorff.
The film follows a man serving a life sentence who takes an in-prison job caring for aging and infirm prisoners suffering from memory loss diseases. What starts as a self-serving mission for parole turns into a deep emotional and transformative relationship, offering a glimmer of redemption in an otherwise unforgiving place.
Participant, whose company mission is dedicated to entertainment that stands at the intersection of art and activism, is producing the film alongside Zodiac Pictures’ Reto Schaerli and Lukas Hobi, and Perry and Tim Palen of Peachtree & Vine Productions.
Participant CEO David Linde said in a statement: “It is amazing to see this project grow. Tyler Perry joining this incredible team, combining with Petra, Clifton and Laurence, brings such a uniquely creative dynamic to a powerful story that showcases how shared compassion makes for a unifying, exhilarating experience.”
“To work with Laurence Fishburne and Clifton Collins, Jr. on this intimate and emotional story is an absolute dream come true,” added Volpe. “I feel a deep gratitude towards the incarcerated men I met while researching this project, and I can’t wait to bring this touching and timely story to audiences.
Hopefully this film will contribute to an important conversation about aging, mental health and the prison system.”
Fishburne has actually worked with Participant in the past, on Steven Soderbergh‘s prescient 2011 drama Contagion. He was seen earlier this year in spy thriller All The Old Knives, and will be soon be seen in Netflix’s YA fantasy film The School For Good And Evil.
Collins Jr. had a good 2021, appearing in films such as Nightmare Alley, After Yang, and Breaking News In Yuba County. His next role will be in Cory Finley‘s sci-fi film Landscape With Invisible Hand.
There’s currently no release date for Frank & Louis, but it sounds like the sort of emotional film that the producers would like to release around awards season.
#Peace.Love.Frank&Louis
