Netflix Landing North America & UK Rights To Jacques Audiard’s Buzzy Palme d’Or Contender ‘Emilia Pérez’ With Selena Gomez & Zoe Saldana – Cannes
EXCLUSIVE: After a rapturous world premiere at the Palais des Festivals on Saturday night and an 11-minute standing ovation, Jacques Audiard’s latest Cannes Competition entry Emilia Peréz is nearing a deal with Netflix for North America and the UK.
The Spanish-language musical crime comedy, starring Karla Sofía Gascón, Selena Gomez, Zoe Saldaña and Édgar Ramirez, has been one of the buzziest projects to come to market in Cannes this year, with multiple U.S. distributors offering on the film since it premiered at the weekend. Netflix has swooped in for North American and UK rights to the original title in a deal that we’re hearing is in the high seven figures. The pact is in its closing stages.
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Deadline understands that a number of key international territories are all close to being done, with CDC United Network also taking rights for Latin America. Pathé pre bought the title for French speaking territories coming into the festival, making it the only presale for the finished film before its Cannes premiere.
The domestic number alone is in the high seven figures, which we understand to be a record domestic number for a foreign-language film. The streamer clearly believes in the movie and it’s conceivable it gets an awards push later this year, especially given that Netflix’s upcoming film slate lacks some of the obvious awards contenders of recent years.
Netflix has been quieter at recent markets but was back at the buyers table in Cannes where they also picked up Glen Powell pre-sale title Monsanto in a deal pegged in the $34M range.
Emilia Pérez follows the story of Rita (Saldaña), an overqualified and undervalued lawyer at a large firm that is more interested in getting criminals off the hook than bringing them to justice. One day, she is given an unexpected way out, when cartel leader Manitas (Gascón) hires her to help him withdraw from his business and realize a plan he has been secretly preparing for years: to become the woman he has always dreamt of being.
Cannes darling Audiard, whose films Rust and Bone, Paris 13th District and Deephan have all played in Competition in Cannes (the latter winning the Palme d’Or in 2015), wrote the screenplay with frequent collaborator Thomas Bidegain and Léa Mysius.
Why Not Productions’ Pascal Caucheteux produces with Audiard and Anthony Vaccarello of Saint Laurent Productions, a film division of the luxury fashion house. Library Pictures International is a financier of the project.
Deadline’s Stephanie Bunbury in her review said: “On paper, it looks mad as a loose wheel. A largely Spanish-language musical about a Mexican druglord having a sex change, featuring a onetime Disney teen star Selena Gomez as a gangster’s wife…but here it is on the screen, a musical marvel.”
Netflix is doing the deal for Emilia Pérez with CAA Media Finance and The Veterans. Pathé will release the title in France on August 28.
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