Shirley Chen & McKenna Grace To Topline Amy Wang’s Satirical Drama ‘Slanted’; Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, Amelie Zilber Among Others Set
EXCLUSIVE: Tideline, the recently launched production label of Fox Entertainment, and Mountain Top Pictures have greenlighted Slanted, a satirical drama from writer-director Amy Wang (Crazy Rich Asians 2).
Cast for the pic, due to begin production in Atlanta next month, includes Shirley Chen (Dìdi), Emmy nominee McKenna Grace (The Handmaid’s Tale), Maitreyi Ramakrishnan (Never Have I Ever), Amelie Zilber (Grown-ish), Vivian Wu (The Afterparty) and Fang Du (The Haves and the Have Nots).
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Slanted centers on Joan Huang (Chen), a desperate to fit in, insecure Chinese American teenager who undergoes experimental trans-racial surgery to become white and secure her chances of being named Prom Queen and winning the acceptance of her peers. Wang, Mark Ankner and Trevor Wall (Ponyboi) will produce, with Fernando Szew, Pillemer, Tony Vassiliadis and Ani Kevork serving as executive producers.
“I am so excited to be able to bring this movie to life with the support of Tideline and Mountain Top Pictures, who have championed this hilariously dark and piercing movie from day one,” said Wang in a statement to Deadline. “This is a deeply personal film that digs into your insecurities and exposes the twisted realities of a fractured identity. I am making this movie in the hopes that by exposing my wounds as a Chinese Australian woman, I can help others heal their own self-doubt.”
Stated Hannah Pillemer, Executive Vice President and Head of Creative & Production of Tideline, “We’ve been longing to work with Amy for quite some time and are thrilled to now partner with her on SLANTED. This envelope-pushing film, headlined by a stellar cast of up-and-coming stars, daringly cuts to the chase on some of the most relevant and provocative issues young society faces today in a sardonic, yet meaningful, way.”
Producer Ankner underscored that “partnering with Tideline, knowing their commitment to pushing the boundaries of audience expectations, perfectly aligns with Amy’s bold vision for SLANTED.”
Soon to be seen starring in Sean Wang’s acclaimed coming-of-age pic Dìdi, which won multiple awards in its Sundance debut and is slated for release by Focus on July 26, Slanted‘s lead Chen has previously been seen in the 20th/Hulu comedy Quiz Lady, as well as such series as The Resident, Speechless and Parenthood.
Most recently tapped to pen a sequel to the pop culture phenomenon Crazy Rich Asians for Warner Bros and Color Force, Wang was a producer on the Michelle Yeoh starrer The Brothers Sun from Brad Falchuk and Netflix, staffing prior to that as a writer on the limited series From Scratch from Netflix/Hello Sunshine. A graduate of AFI who won Gold at the Young Director Awards at Cannes Lions 2018 for her acclaimed short Unnatural, she also previously directed five episodes of The Birch for Facebook Watch before being selected to participate in The Ryan Murphy Half Program, as well as Starz Directors Program.
Launched earlier this year, Tideline’s projects range from features at a range of budgets to limited series, made-for-platform content and other cross-genre formats. Previously backing Chelsea Peretti’s directorial debut First Time Female Director and the Sundance title Ponyboi, written by and starring River Gallo, the company’s upcoming slate also includes The Dress Up Gang Movie (wt), centered on the comedy troupe of the same name, and the thriller Beacon, starring Demián Bechir and Julia Goldani Telles, which will make its world premiere at the Tribeca Festival next month.
Wang is represented by Verve and Kaplan/Perrone Entertainment; Chen by Arise Artists Agency and Echo Lake Entertainment; Grace by CAA, Entertainment 360, and Hansen, Jacobson, Teller; Ramakrishnan by CAA, Premier Artists Management in Canada, and Felker Toczek Suddleson; Zilber by UTA, Atlas Artists, and Jackoway Austen Tyerman; Wu by Realm Talent, AFA Prime Talent Media, and Stankevich Law; and Du by Wolf Talent Group and Station 3.
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