CANNES TOLDJA! The Weinstein Company Acquires U.S. Rights To Todd Haynes-Helmed ‘Carol’

The Weinstein Company (TWC) today announced that it has acquired US rights for Number 9 Films CAROL from HanWay Films. Producers Elizabeth Karlsen and Stephen Woolley simultaneously announced that Academy Award nominee Todd Haynes (I’m Not There, Far From Heaven) has come on-board to direct.

Carol is a love story about pursuit, betrayal and passion that follows the burgeoning relationship between two very different women in 1950s New York. One, a girl in her twenties working in a department store who dreams of a more fulfilling life, and the other, a wife trapped in a loveless, moneyed marriage desperate to break free but fearful of losing her daughter in the process.

The deal was brokered by Thorsten Schumacher, MD of HanWay Films with President/MD of European Acquisitions Robert Walak and TWC President of Acquistions Mark Gooder.

Cate Blanchett and Mia Wasikowska star in the new adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s novel ‘Carol’ (aka ‘The Price of Salt’). The acclaimed Phyllis Nagy (Mrs Harris) has written the adaptation based on renowned suspense author Patricia Highsmith’s novella (‘Strangers on a Train’, ‘The Talented Mr Ripley’). The film will be produced by Elizabeth Karlsen and Stephen Woolley from Number 9 Films, and is co-developed and co-financed by Film4. Christine Vachon’s Killer Films will co-produce. Filming starts October 2013 in London and New York.

Elizabeth Karlsen said: “Stephen (Woolley) and I are extremely excited that The Weinstein Company has joined the Carol team alongside Todd Haynes and Christine Vachon. It’s a sensational adaptation by Phyllis Nagy that we have been developing with Tessa Ross at Film4 that warrants this calibre of a first class creative and distribution team.”

Thorsten Schumacher, Managing Director of HanWay Films, said: “The stars
couldn’t have been more aligned for this wonderful project and with
TWC now releasing the picture stateside, it’s guaranteed that the
creative team behind CAROL will get the award recognition it
deserves.”

Said TWC Co-Chairman Harvey Weinstein: “Patricia Highsmith’s book defied convention and broke social boundaries at the time that it was published. With the outstanding cast and filmmaking team being assembled, it will make a moving and poignant film as well.”