Nick Offerman, Dennis Quaid & Jacob Tremblay Thriller ‘Sovereign’ Acquired By Briarcliff Entertainment – Cannes

Anthony D'Alessandro
·4 min read
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EXCLUSIVE: Briarcliff Entertainment has snapped up North American distribution rights from Concourse Media to Christian Swegal’s true crime thriller Sovereign, starring Nick Offerman, Dennis Quaid and Jacob Tremblay.

Swegal wrote and will direct later this year in Arkansas. A theatrical release during Q4 2024 is planned.

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Based on real events, the story follows a father and son (Offerman and Tremblay) who identify as Sovereign Citizens, a group of anti-government extremists, as they venture across the country and find themselves in a standoff with a chief of police (Dennis Quaid) that sets off an intense manhunt with tragic consequences.

“Sovereign is a timely and captivating story and all of us at Briarcliff are looking forward to working with Christian, Nick, the Concourse team and this stellar cast on what will be a gripping ride for movie audiences,” said Tom Ortenberg, Briarcliff Entertainment CEO.

“We are beyond excited to be partnering with Briarcliff on this intense and layered thriller,” said executive producer Matthew Shreder. “Christian is uniquely positioned to tell this story and our cast couldn’t be more perfect. Looking forward to working with Tom and Jessica as we roll out this very special film for audiences nationwide.”

Said Swegal: “When I first heard about this crime, I was immediately hooked. Radicalization is a familiar concept, but at a time when our democracy is strained to the breaking point, and conspiracy-driven domestic terrorism is emerging as a real threat, the topic is more relevant than ever.”

The film is being produced by Nick Moceri, under his All Night Diner banner, whose credits include the upcoming Sitting In Bars With Cake at Amazon Studios, Deidra & Laney Rob a Train (Sundance 2017) and A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night (Sundance 2014).

EPs are Shreder, Grant Mohrman, Ortenberg, Jessica Rose, Russell Geyser and Clay Pecorin. The deal was negotiated by Rose and Ortenberg on behalf of Briarcliff with Shreder and Mohrman for Concourse, who are co-financing and represent worldwide rights. UTA Independent Film Group also negotiated on behalf of the filmmakers.

The film has also gone to Grand Entertainment in Middle East, Paradise for CIS, Ricochet for Airlines, and Tanweer for Greece, with a handful of more deals underway.

Offerman can be seen in HBO Max’s The Last of Us and previously starred in Peacock’s The Resort, Hulu’s Devs and Pam & Tommy, A League of Their Own for Amazon and Park and Recreation.  He is repped by UTA and Jackoway Austen Tyerman.

Tremblay can be seen this weekend as Flounder in the live-action remake of Disney’s The Little Mermaid and in Legendary’s The Toxic Avenger opposite Peter Dinklage. He received a SAG nomination for his breakout performance in 2015’s Room, starring opposite Oscar-winner Brie Larson, and in 2017 starred in the critical and commercial hit Wonder. He headlined Universal’s R-rated comedy hit Good Boys in 2019. The actor is repped by UTA, Play Management, and Jackoway Austen Tyerman.

Quaid is an Emmy and two-time Golden Globe nominee, whose upcoming projects include HBO Max’s series, Full Circle, from Steven Soderbergh, as well as Paramount+’s new original series, Bass Reeves, from co-creator/showrunner Taylor Sheridan. He is known for his roles in hit films The Rookie, The Day After Tomorrow, Traffic, Vantage Point, Frequency, The Parent Trap, Soul Surfer, The Right Stuff, Breaking Away, Midway and several more. On the film and television side, Quaid’s recent big-screen credits include starring roles in Netflix’s uplifting film, Blue Miracle, Sony’s thriller The Intruder, Universal’s A Dog’s Journey and A Dog’s Purpose and Roadside Attractions’ I Can Only Imagine, among others. Quaid recently completed production portraying the 40th president of the United States in the biopic, Reagan, produced by Mark Joseph and directed by Sean McNamara. Quaid is represented by UTA, Brillstein Entertainment Partners, Adkins Publicity and Hansen, Jacobson, Teller.

Swegal is a graduate of USC School of Cinematic Arts. Swegal most recently co-wrote the feature film, Proud Mary, for Screen Gems, and is scripting the pilot for Solar, a series he created for Syfy. In 2019, Swegal helped develop the series Fordlandia for director Werner Herzog at AMC. The filmmaker is repped by Gersh, Gotham Group, and Yorn Levine Barnes Krintzman Rubenstein Kohner Endlich & Gellman.

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