Viggo Mortensen Sets ‘Falling’ as Directorial Debut

Viggo Mortensen, the BAFTA, Golden Globe and two-time Oscar nominee — who is currently awards-tipped for his role in Green Book — is planning to go behind the camera for his directorial debut.

Falling, which was also written by Mortensen, has been billed as an “intimate drama about a son’s relationship with his aging father.” 

Mortensen will star in one of the two lead roles alongside three-time Golden Globe nominee Lance Henriksen (Aliens, Millennium, Near Dark, Mom and Dad, Appaloosa) and Sverrir Gudnason (The Girl in the Spider’s Web, Borg vs McEnroe, Original).

The story follows John Petersen (Mortensen), who lives with his partner, Eric, and their adopted daughter, Monica, in Southern California. His father, Willis (Henriksen), is a farmer whose attitudes and behavior belong to a far more traditional era and family model. When Willis travels to Los Angeles for an indefinite stay with John’s family in order to search for a place to retire, these two very different worlds collide.

Falling is being produced by Daniel Bekerman (The Witch, Percy) of Scythia Films together with Mortensen, who previously produced Everyone Has a Plan, Far From Men and Jauja through Perceval Pictures. Production leads include acclaimed cinematographer Marcel Zyskind (The Two Faces of January, Trishna, Mammut) and award-winning production designer Carol Spier (Eastern Promises, A History of Violence and the upcoming The Kindness of Strangers).

HanWay Films will handle international sales and distribution, and will commence sales at the American Film Market. UTA Independent Film Group will oversee the US sale. 

“The industry has always regarded Viggo as a really soulful artist. He is a talented photographer, poet, and musician,” said HanWay managing director Gabrielle Stewart. “His screenplay for Falling is a powerful, well-observed family drama. We are thrilled to be part of his promising and exciting directorial debut.”

Mortensen is represented by Theresa Peters at UTA and Lynn Rawlins, Henriksen by Jeff Witjas at APA and Jane Henriksen, and Gudnason by Bella Wingfield, Charles Collier and Annika Kilden.  

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