EXCLUSIVE: Screen icon John Travolta (Pulp Fiction) is to star in Black Tides, the orca survival thriller we told you about last week from director Renny Harlin (Cliffhanger, Die Hard 2).
Travolta takes on the lead role of Bill Pierce, an estranged father whose attempt to reconnect with his daughter and grandson turns into a harrowing battle for survival when their boat is attacked by rogue orcas off the southern coast of Spain.
Pic is written by Chris Sparling (Buried) and Ángel Agudo (Prime Video’s Apocalypse Z), and produced by Adrián Guerra and Nuria Valls’s Nostromo Pictures (Buried).
The film, which is due to shoot at the end of the summer, will be “shot old-school, with in-camera effects and real water work”. The Solution Entertainment Group is handling worldwide sales excluding Spain at the Cannes market.
“John Travolta brings the perfect combination of grit, depth, vulnerability and charisma to the character of Bill Pierce, the estranged father, that achingly captures the tragedies of family dynamics,” said Harlin. “I can’t wait to show fans of big screen cinema how his movie star presence and physicality will add gravity to the epic action sequences and deeply emotional personal drama. As a director, I consider myself fortunate to join a list of acclaimed filmmakers who’ve had the privilege of getting to know John as an artist and a person.”
Harlin, also known for Deep Blue Sea, most recently directed box office hit The Strangers: Chapter 1 and has Nostromo-produced shark survival thriller Deep Water and The Strangers: Chapter 2 upcoming.
“You build a film like this around very few people. John’s one of them. He brings the history, the craft, and the instinct that lets a character land in a way that lasts,” added producer Adrián Guerra.
Adrián Guerra and Núria Valls’ Spanish film and TV outfit Nostromo had their breakthrough success with Buried, starring Ryan Reynolds. Recent releases include Netflix hit trilogy Through My Window and Bird Box Barcelona, Prime’s video’s Apocalypse Z, and The Penguin Lessons. Currently, Nostromo is filming the international co-production Day Drinker, starring Madelyn Cline, Johnny Depp, and Penélope Cruz, while projects in post-production include The Night Manager season 2 and The Map That Leads to You, directed by Lasse Hallström.
