Johnny Flynn (The Talented Mr. Talent, One Life) is set to star in the survival thriller A Prayer for the Dying, which also stars John C. Reilly. The film is currently in production outside Bratislava, Slovakia.
Anton and New Europe Films are jointly managing worldwide rights, with sales set to continue at the upcoming Toronto International Film Festival.
Written and directed by Dara Van Dusen, A Prayer for the Dying is based on the novel by Stewart O'Nan and is set in 1870 in Friendship, Wisconsin, a small town of Scandinavian settlers struggling in the aftermath of the Civil War. Faced with a new, even more terrifying threat, one man must make a dire choice between saving his young family and protecting the community that gave him a second chance at life and meaning. Flynn plays Jacob Hansen, the sheriff who keeps the town safe, and Reilly plays the local doctor.
A Prayer for the Dying also stars leading Scandinavian actors Kristin Kujas-Thorpe (Ninja Baby, Sick of Myself) and Gustaf Lind (The Northman, Queen of Hearts).
“I am so thrilled to be working on this incredible project with such incredible talent,” said Flynn. “Dara's adaptation of Stewart O'Nan's powerful novel is full of delicate and eerie beauty. It's a dark and sinister tale that, although set in the past, seems incredibly prescient for the volatile times we live in.”
Van Dusen is a writer and director originally from New York, currently living in Oslo, Norway. She has received numerous development and production grants from the Norwegian Film Institute. Her short film, Significant Others, was selected for the Cannes Official Selection. Her most recent short film, The Blind Man, an adaptation of a short story by Bertolt Brecht, was nominated for Best Nordic Short Film and selected by Nordic Panorama. She is represented by Rowena Wallace at Peach House.
“It's a dream come true to not only be given the opportunity to adapt and direct a novel I love so much, but to bring it to the screen with some of my favorite actors,” Van Dusen said. “Johnny and John are so amazing. It's all a dream come true.”
The film's producers are Diveke Björkli Glover and Andrea Berentzen Ottmar of i-i Pictures, whose previous works include Joachim Trier's The Baddest Man in the World and Christopher Borgli's Sick of Myself. Co-producers include Mimi Sporn of Garage Film International, Tristan Goliger of The Bureau, Vicky Miha of Asterisk*, Fenia Kosovica of Blonde Audiovisual Productions, Zara Waldeck and John Baker of Banacks Film, Film i Vest and Mediefondet Zephyr. The film is supported by Creative Europe, the Norwegian Film Institute, the Swedish Film Institute, the UK Global Screen Fund and the Hellenic Film Centre.
“Seeing Dara's captivating script brought to life by this incredible cast has been everything I could have hoped for,” said Graber. “Filming here in Slovakia with my incredible team has been an amazing experience so far, and I am so excited to share the film with audiences.”
Flynn is repped by United Agents and CAA, while Reilly is repped by CAA and Framework Entertainment. Kristin Kujas Thorpe and Gustav Lind are both repped by Agent Farmun and Alexandra Mandic.
Callum Turner was previously set to star in “A Prayer for the Dying.”
