Sundance: ‘Fair Play’ Sells to Netflix for $20M

In a massive deal, Sundance standout Fair Play has sold to Netflix.

The title begat a bidding war when it premiered Saturday. Searchlight, Lionsgate and Neon were among those in the running, with the final price tag in the $20 million range. Netflix had no comment on the financial aspects of the deal.

Play follows Emily (Phoebe Dynevor) and Luke (Alden Ehrenreich), a newly engaged couple who work at a high-powered New York finance company, whose relationship is thrown into disarray when Emily gets promoted ahead of Luke. The movie is Chloe Domont’s feature film debut after making a name for herself directing shorts and episodes of such shows as Billions, Suits and Ballers.

Rian Johnson’s T-Street banner and MRC are behind the movie, which was produced by Leopold Hughes, Ben LeClair, Tim White, Trevor White and Allan Mandelbaum. Johnson and Ram Bergman exec produced.

Fair Play is the first film to come out of the deal that T-Street’s Johnson and Bergman made with MRC to hatch vehicles with emerging talent. Netflix and T-Street are working together on Johnson’s Knives Out sequels, the first of which, Glass Onion, came out recently.

MRC handled the sale on behalf of the filmmaker.

Other deals are still percolating at the festival. Midnight Dreams, the dark Jonathan Majors drama, is said to have multiple offers, as does John Carney’s musical drama Flora and Son.