SERENA Starring Lawrence & Cooper

[Project862006]

LOS ANGELES – April 11, 2012 – Production has commenced in Prague on 2929 and Studiocanal Productions’ highly anticipated movie “Serena” directed by Oscar®-winner Susanne Bier (“In a Better World,” “Things We Lost in the Fire”) from a screenplay by Christopher Kyle (“Alexander”). The film stars Academy Award nominee Jennifer Lawrence (“Winter’s Bone,” “The Hunger Games”), Bradley Cooper (“Limitless,” “The Hangover”), Toby Jones (“Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy,” “My Week with Marilyn”) and Rhys Ifans (“Skyfall,” “The Amazing Spider Man”). “Serena” is based on Ron Rash’s acclaimed novel of the same name, which was a finalist for the 2009 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction.
“Serena” is produced by Ben Cosgrove, 2929 co-owners Todd Wagner and Mark Cuban, Chockstone Pictures’ Paula Mae Schwartz and Steve Schwartz, and Nick Wechsler via his Nick Wechsler Productions banner. Studiocanal co-financed the project with 2929 and is handling all foreign sales.
The film follows newlyweds George (Cooper) and Serena Pemberton (Lawrence) who travel from Boston to the mountains of North Carolina where they begin to build a timber empire in 1929. Serena soon shows herself to be the equal of any man: overseeing crews, hunting rattle-snakes, even saving a man’s life in the wilderness. Together, this king and queen rule their dominion, killing or vanquishing all who stand in the way of their ambitions. But when Serena learns that she can never bear a child, she sets out to murder the woman who bore George a son before his marriage. And when she starts to suspect that George is protecting his illegitimate family, the Pembertons’ intense, passionate marriage begins to unravel as the story moves toward its shocking reckoning.
“2929 is thrilled to bring Ron Rash’s epic American novel to the big screen,” Cosgrove said. “Audiences are drawn to great stories with authentic characters – with this amazing cast and a director of Susanne’s caliber at the helm, we’re confident that moviegoers will find ‘Serena’ riveting.”
“Serena” also marks the second collaboration in the last year between 2929 and Studiocanal. The two also partnered on “Deadfall” starring Eric Bana, Olivia Wilde and Sissy Spacek; the film bows later this year.
“We are very happy to be partnering with 2929 again,” said Olivier Courson, Chairman and CEO of Studiocanal. “Susanne Bier is a director we all greatly admire at Studiocanal, so to be able to finance and distribute her next film is a great pleasure for us. And like any filmgoer, we are very excited to see Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence together in this epic film.”
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[terry78]

Interesting story, and it should be cool seeing these two work together.

 

[I SEE SPIDEY]

Not a huge fan of Cooper but I want to Gay marry Jen.

 

[cherokeesam]

What THE hell is it with Hollywood thinking that the Czech Republic looks a damn thing like the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina....???? They did the same damn thing with Cold Mountain and shot it over there.

Jeebuz. I *live* in these mountains, and they look *nothing* like Transylvania. (Although there is a county near me bearing that same name, so....)

More than a little ironic that Jen was *just* in Western NC filming The Hunger Games, and now when she gets a movie that's actually set here, they ship her to Europe.

Anyho. I know the story very, very well, as well as its actual history, since my own family has intimate ties to the principal players. I knew Rash's novel had been optioned, but I had no idea it would attract this level of star talent. Just wish they coulda been authentic to the setting.

 

[Wolfwood]

***** be craaaaazy

 

[mclay18]

What THE hell is it with Hollywood thinking that the Czech Republic looks a damn thing like the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina....???? They did the same damn thing with Cold Mountain and shot it over there.

Cold Mountain was shot mostly in Romania, not the Czech Republic. But I agree, the Blue Ridge Mountains still offer some natural, scenic beauty that Serena could've tapped for accuracy. Plus, NC has that healthy 25% tax expenditure rebate that lured Hunger Games over -- perhaps the Euro was weak and the U.S. dollar stronger?

 

[cherokeesam]

Cold Mountain was shot mostly in Romania, not the Czech Republic. But I agree, the Blue Ridge Mountains still offer some natural, scenic beauty that Serena could've tapped for accuracy. Plus, NC has that healthy 25% tax expenditure rebate that lured Hunger Games over -- perhaps the Euro was weak and the U.S. dollar stronger?

Maybe.
But I'm sure NC would have gladly thrown even more tax breaks at the production, and it would've been great to see locals here get some work (no matter how temporary), the WNC Film Commission get another feather in their cap, and to see these mountains (and its people) accurately represented on the big screen.

 

[terry78]

http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=122885

Trailer is online.