‘The OA’ Creators Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij to Develop Film and TV Projects at Sister
Writer/directors Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij, who were behind the recent critically acclaimed FX limited series “A Murder At the End of the World,” have struck a deal with indie production shingle Sister to develop, write and produce original film and television projects.
The deal, described as a “multi-year creative partnership,” reunites Marling and Batmanglij with Cindy Holland, the global CEO of Sister. Holland was vice president of original content for Netflix when she developed “The OA,” which was the first TV project from Marling (who also starred) and Batmanglij.
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“We’re excited to build new worlds in film and TV with the incredible team at Sister,” Marling said in a statement. “Cindy Holland has been behind some of the most radical narrative leaps in the business, which we witnessed firsthand at Netflix. With the arrival of algorithmic storytelling — both in the programming directives and the authorship of the stories themselves — it’s more important than ever for outside the box thinkers to band together and make innovative, original works that look forward rather than backwards. We can think of no better partners than the hive mind at Sister to dive into the future with.”
Marling and Batmanglij both wrote and directed “A Murder at the End of the World,” which stars Emma Corrin, Harris Dickinson, Clive Owen and Marling, and was nominated for limited series at the 2024 WGA Awards, as well as at the 2024 Critics’ Choice Awards.
“The OA,” written by Marling and Batmanglij (who also directed), also starred Kingsley Ben-Adir, Jason Isaacs and Emory Cohen, in addition to Marling. The thriller premiered in 2016, with a second season in 2019, and landed a WGA nom in 2020 for episodic drama. The series’ cancellation provoked an outcry from fans; in a New York Times story last year, Holland said the decision to ax the show was “a fairly sad experience for all of us, including the audience.”
This reps the second talent deal for Sister under Holland, who sealed a first-look pact in May with Natasha Lyonne’s Animal Pictures.
“Brit and Zal are wildly imaginative, ambitious, and deeply thoughtful partners, and I am excited to work with them again,” Holland said. “Their ability to build worlds and ground their work in humanity is inspiring, and we are thrilled to welcome them to the community of artists at Sister.”
Marling and Batmanglij first became friends when they were undergrads at Georgetown. The duo’s early work included the feature “Sound of My Voice” (which they wrote together, Marling produced and Batmanglij directed). That film premiered at the 2011 Sundance festival; Marling was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for best supporting female, while Marling, Batmanglij, Hans C. Ritter and Shelley Surpin were nommed for best first feature.
“Sound of My Voice” also scored Batmanglij nominations for the Gotham and Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director Award.
The duo followed that up with 2013’s feature “The East,” which they also co-wrote. Batmanglij directed and Marling co-produced “The East,” which starred Marling, Elliot Page and Alexander Skarsgard.
Sister’s upcoming projects include Netflix’s “Black Doves” and “Kaos”; it’s also behind Netflix’s “Eric,” Prime Video’s “The Power,” AMC’s “This is Going to Hurt,” AMC’s “Gangs of London,” HBO’s “Landscapers,” HBO’s “Chernobyl” and Netflix’s Dan Levy film “Good Grief.” Sister has deals with documentary production company Dorothy St; British animation company Locksmith Animation; publishing venture Zando; podcast studio Campside Media; comic book/digital media publisher AWA Studios; London music venue KOKO; and unscriped TV/tech entertainment company Yes Yes Media.
Marling and Batmanglij are repped by CAA.
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