Aaron Taylor-Johnson is re-teaming with his Outlaw King director David Mackenzie on Fuze, a new crime thriller from the Oscar-nominated Hell or High Water filmmaker.
The plot of Fuze revolves around the discovery of an unexploded World War II bomb at a London construction site, which sparks a mass evacuation as bomb disposal experts descend to defuse it. But the distraction also provides the perfect cover for a bank heist.
European production group Anton is financing Fuze and will kick off pre-sales on the project at the European Film Market in Berlin next week. UTA Independent Film Group and WME Independent will co-rep U.S. rights with Anton.
Gillian Berrie (Outlaw King, Tetris) will produce Fuze through his and Mackenzie’s production company Sigma Films together with Sebastien Raybaud and Callum Grant for Anton. Hell or High Water cinematographer Giles Nuttgens will lens the movie. Mackenzie will direct from an original script by Ben Hopkins.
“I had the idea of combining all the high stakes of an unexploded bomb with that of a bank robbery — clashing these two genres to create as much pressure as possible -in a context that feels as real as possible,” said Mackenzie in a statement. “Ben Hopkins took those ingredients and cooked up the compelling script that we are now taking into production.”
Pitching the project, Berrie said Fuze would meld “the relentless tension of a bomb movie to the heist genre. Buckle up!”
Anton will present a sizzle reel for the film to buyers at EFM. Also on Anton’s Berlin slate are Zach Strauss’ psychological horror film Palette starring Hunter Schafer and Noomi Rapace, and A Prayer for the Dying with Callum Turner.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson is repped by Brillstein Entertainment Partners, WME and Sloane, Offer, Weber and Dern, LLP. David Mackenzie is repped by UTA, United Agents in London, and Alan Wertheimer and Kim Jaime. Gillian Berrie is repped by UTA, United Agents in London, and Alan Wertheimer and Kim Jaime. Giles Nuttgens is repped by UTA.