Tribeca Film Acquires Andy Serkis' 'Death of a Superhero' in North America

After seeing its TIFF premiere in September, Tribeca Film has acquired North American rights to "Death of a Superhero" and will release the film in theaters and on VOD in 2012.

3:07 PM PDT 10/31/2011 by Jay A. Fernandez

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Tribeca Film has acquired North American rights to Death of a Superhero and will release the film in theaters and on VOD in 2012. The ensemble drama had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September.

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A mix of live-action and animation, Superhero tells the story of a dying 15-year-old boy who draws tales of an invincible superhero as he struggles with his mortality, finds an unexpected love and makes peace with his parents. Andy Serkis, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Jessica Schwarz and Aisling Loftus star in the movie, which was directed by Ian FitzGibbon. Anthony McCarten adapted the screenplay from his own novel.

“My longtime admiration of Ian FitzGibbon’s work has grown tremendously after seeing how he has collaborated with this film’s remarkable cast to tell a moving and powerful story in such an innovative way,” said Tribeca Enterprises chief creative officer Geoffrey Gilmore. “The film's use of animation coupled with the rare, pitch-perfect performance by the teenage lead actor, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, makes this a special film."

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Astrid Kahmke, Philipp Kreuzer and Michael Garland produced the film, a production of Bavaria Pictures and Grand Pictures. Tribeca's Nick Savva negotiated the deal with Bavaria Film International's Stefanie Zeitler on behalf of the filmmakers. Bavaria is repping worldwide sales rights.

Tribeca Film has recently released Turkey Bowl, Shut Up Little Man! An Audio Misadventure and Grave Encounters.