Cornerstone has unveiled the first look of Oscar and BAFTA winner Emma Thompson and emerging star Daryl McCormack in Sophie Hyde’s “Good Luck to You, Leo Grande” ahead of the Cannes virtual market, where the company will also showcase footage from the film.
The film is directed by Sophie Hyde (“Animals”) from an original screenplay by comedian and writer Katy Brand (“Katy Brand’s Big Ass Show”).
Thompson (“Late Night,” “Nanny McPhee”) stars as Nancy Stokes, a 55-year-old widow yearning for some adventure, human connection and good sex, which she was robbed of in her stable but stale marriage. To make things right, the ex-teacher devises a plan and hires the services of Leo Grande, a sex worker — or “sex therapist,” as he puts it — in his early 20s for a night of bliss.
Align is financing the film with principal Adrian Politowski producing alongside Debbie Gray from Genesius Pictures. Executive producers include Martin Metz, Nessa McGill and Nadia Khamlichi of Align, Julian Gleek of Genesius Pictures, Alison Thompson and Mark Gooder of Cornerstone, Sophie Hyde and Katy Brand. The film is currently in post-production.
Cornerstone is handling international sales and distribution, co-representing U.S. sales rights with CAA Media Finance. The film marks the first joint project between Cornerstone and Genesius Pictures who are partners in The Reset Collective, the Australian production and distribution company that launched last year.
Hyde’s rollicking “Animals,” starring Holliday Grainger and Alia Shawkat, received critical praise at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival and is set for release in the U.S. on Nov. 10, while “52 Tuesdays” won the directing award for World Cinema at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival and picked up a Crystal Bear prize at the Berlin Film Festival.