A24 Buys ‘Friendship,’ Starring Tim Robinson and Paul Rudd, Following TIFF Premiere (EXCLUSIVE)
A24 has landed rights to “Friendship,” a comedy starring Tim Robinson of “I Think You Should Leave” fame and Paul Rudd. The movie had its world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival as part of the Midnight Madness program.
Andrew DeYoung wrote and directed “Friendship” in his feature debut. Channeling the cringe comedy of “I Think You Should Leave,” Robinson plays a suburban dad who obsessively pursues a bond with his charming neighbor (Rudd). Kate Mara, Jack Dylan Grazer, Josh Segarra and Billy Bryk also appear in the film.
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“Friendship” is Robinson’s first starring role in a movie. Rudd is known for comedies like “Anchorman,” “The 40-Year-Old Virgin,” “Clueless” and “I Love You, Man.” DeYoung has directed episodes of “The Other Two,” “Pen15,” “High Fidelity” and “Our Flag Means Death.”
Daily Beast critic Nick Schager called “Friendship” the “funniest film of the year,” adding that “what truly elevates Robinson’s maiden cinematic outing […] is its recognition that, at heart, his oddballs aren’t just harmless goofs—they’re unhinged psychopaths.”
Nick Weidenfeld, Raphael Margules, J.D. Lifshitz, and John Holland were producers on “Friendship.” Executive producers were Paul Rudd, Tracy Rosenblum, Alexis Garcia and DeYoung. WME Independent and UTA are co-repping domestic sales for the title with Fifth Season.
Elsewhere on the festival circuit, A24 has acquired “The Brutalist,” a historical epic directed by Brady Corbet and starring Adrien Brody and Felicity Jones, for U.S. distribution, as well as Luca Guadagnino’s “Queer,” a romantic drama with Daniel Craig and Drew Starkey.
DeYoung is repped by Dan McManus and Rise Management.
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