Saffron Burrows, James Cosmo & Toby Stephens Lead Irish Horror ‘The Morrigan’, Amp Launches Sales — AFM
EXCLUSIVE: Finance has closed on Irish horror The Morrigan, which starts shooting November 6th in Northern Ireland.
Starring Saffron Burrows (Mozart In The Jungle), the film follows a successful archaeologist but absentee mother who travels to Ireland to excavate a centuries old tomb. However, within the site lurks a danger hidden from mankind for centuries. Once it is unleashed she must battle to save her rebellious teenage daughter from possession by a vengeful ‘Pagan War Goddess’, known as The Morrigan.
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Cast is rounded out by James Cosmo (Game Of Thrones) and Toby Stephens (Black Sails). AMP is handling worldwide sales and will be selling this month ahead of the AFM. The project has a SAG-AFTRA interim agreement.
Written and directed by Colum Eastwood (Black Medicine) and based on the short film of the same name, The Morrigan is produced by Ashley Holberry and Gavin Cosmo Mehrtens of Cowboy Cosmonaut Films. Finance comes from Quickfire Films, Northern Ireland Screen, M2 Mediapost and private equity.
Holberry and Mehrtens, who met at Working Title, are also working on survival thriller The Bayou, which they are producing alongside genre specialists The Tea Shop (47 Metres Down). That movie is also scheduled to begin shooting this year.
James Norrie of AMP commented: “The Morrigan breathes new life into the demonic possession genre. With its rich pagan folklore it manages to be a balls to the wall horror, and a brilliant female-centric genre movie showcasing just how far a mother will go to protect her child. We are thrilled to be aboard”.
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