‘Ridiculous And Ill-Advised’: Noah Centineo’s Arkhum Productions Developing Rale Sidebottom Book For Film

Matt Grobar
·2 min read
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EXCLUSIVE: Actor Noah Centineo’s Arkhum Productions has acquired rights to Rale Sidebottom’s book Ridiculous and Ill-Advised for development as a feature, Deadline can reveal.

Sidebottom will adapt the script, with Centineo to produce via Arkhum. The team is eyeing a 2025 production start.

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Published by Glass Spider Publishing last December, Ridiculous and Ill-Advised drops us into the world of the DIY 1990s, where dropout musicians, demolition derby gods, freak out filmmakers and wild artists grapple with the universal mysteries of love and economy, the possibility of success at making a living on their own terms. The book is billed as a tale of American youth and a freak flag planted squarely in the heart of the Southwest, a world where all unite in a common urgency: making a monster movie, at any cost.

“I feel extremely fortunate to have discovered not only Rale’s “Ridiculous and Ill-Advised” but also the incredible mind that holds his distinct taste and tone as a writer, director and creative,” Centineo told Deadline. “He has a rare ability to place you within a colorful and visceral world that breathes alongside you as though it were a character itself. We look forward to carrying on that energy with the adaptation of his novella.”

Calling Centineo “that rare visionary that sees the potential in the fantastical,” Sidebottom says that he’s “excited that he’s willing to go the distance to help bring this monster to life and set it loose into the world. I believe stories like this are more important than ever, as an increasingly modernized society threatens to squeeze the life out of the dreamers simply for profit.”

Most recently, Centineo has been seen on screen in A24’s buzzy dark comedy Dream Scenario, starring Nicolas Cage, which world premiered at the Toronto Film Festival. Previously, he exec produced and starred in Netflix’s The Recruit, which returns for a second season next year, also appearing as Atom Smasher in Warner Bros’ DC pic Black Adam. This year, Centineo launched production company Arkhum Productions alongside Head of Production Enzo Marc, focusing on comedy and drama projects with an emphasis on social commentary. One of its projects, which has Centineo set to star, is The Greatest Disaster in Cinema History.

Sidebottom has spent over three decades documenting the backwaters of American dropout culture, as a chronicler of the hazards and glory of artists defining their own futures. From performing in wild, avant-garde bands (Vacuum Tree Head, Societas Insomnia) to touring nationally with roving puppet theaters (Tears of Joy Theatre), he’s invested heart and soul in the experience of art for art’s sake.

Centineo is repped by WME, Definition Entertainment, and Myman Greenspan Fox.

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