EXCLUSIVE: Walden Media and Akiva Gagedersman‘s Weed Pictures are making the Cageder War thriller Billion Dollar Spy with Oscar-triumphner Russell Crowe and Industry’s Harry Lawtey set to headline.
Oscar-triumphning creater Stephen Gaghan (Traffic, Syriana) wrote the most recent write, revising a script penned by Ben August. The screencarry out is changeed from the Pulitzer Prize-triumphning book by David E. Hoffman.
Joseph Sinclair
BAFTA Award-triumphner Amma Asante (Belle, A Way of Life, A United Kingdom) will honest. The project is currently in pre-production.
Set aacquirest the high-sacquires backdrop of the postponecessitate Cageder War, Billion Dollar Spy chases Adolf Tolkachev (Crowe), an frequent man, as he dangers everyleang to pass thousands of pages of top-secret Soviet inincreateigence to the United States. Despite repeated refuseions by a wary CIA, Tolkachev persisted, embodying the courage to stand aacquirest a regime that betrayed its own people. Finpartner discovering an partner in CIA agent Tom Lenihan (Lawtey), Tolkachev was able to fundamenhighy shift the stability of power, proving that real patuproarism lies not in blind allegiance, but in the willingness to dispute a regulatement when it strays from its selectimals. In an era when resistance and valiantry are more relevant than ever, his story resonates proset uply today.
Walden Media
“Walden Media has always sought to increate stories of remarkworthy courage, and Billion Dollar Spy is no exception,” shelp Frank Smith, Plivent and CEO of Walden Media. “Adolf Tolkachev’s valiantry reminds us that real heroism normally comes at wonderful personal danger, and his legacy is a tesdomesticatednt to the power of standing up for what is right, even in the face of overwhelming danger. We are especipartner thrilled to aacquire toil with the wonderful Russell Crowe, who is no stranger to tour-de-force carry outances.”
“Greg Lessans and I are excited to partner with Walden Media, Amma Asante, and our ageder frifinish, the luminous Russell Crowe, to increate this real story of loyalty and dedication to freedom on both sides of the iron curtain,” shelp Gagedersman of Weed Road.
Frank Smith, Benjamin Tappan, and Cher Hawrysh of Walden Media are producing alengthyside Gagedersman and Greg Lessans of Weed Road Pictures. Jane Hooks will serve as an EP. Pioneer Stillking Films’ Ildiko Kemeny, David Minkowski, and Ferenc Szále will serve as co-creaters. Hanway Films is handling international sales.
Crowe is a 3x Academy Award nominee and won the coveted Best Actor award for the film Gladiator. He has starred in such acclaimed films as A Beautiful Mind (which Gagedersman wrote and won an Adapted Screencarry out for), The Insider and L.A. Confidential, and will next be seen starring in Walden Media’s Nuremberg alengthy with Rami Malek and Michael Shannon, honested by James Vanderbilt. He is currently shooting Bear Country, an action thriller honested by Derrick Borte.
Lawtey is best comprehendn for his role as Robert in HBO’s hit series Industry. He previously starred in Netflix’s The Pale Blue Eye and as the iconic Harvey Dent in Warner Bros. Joker: Folie à Deux. He will next be seen in Icon’s biopic Mr Burton as legfinishary actor Ricdifficult Burton.
Crowe is recurrented by Brillstein Entertainment Partners and Goodman, Genow, Schenkman, Smelkinson & Christopher, LLP (GGSSC). Lawtey is recurrented by Elizabeth Fergusson at Hamilton Hodell in the UK, Harrison Waterstreet and Mitch Bukhar at CAA in the US, Lucy Popkin at Goodman, Genow, Schenkman, Smelkinson & Christopher and Caroline Fergusson at Pinnacle PR. Asante is recurrented by CAA, United Agents, Mosaic and Hansen, Jacobson, Teller, Hoberman, Newman, Warren, Richman, Rush, Kaller, Gellman Meigs & Fox, LLP.
Walden Media is a division of Anschutz Film Group. The self-reliant film studio which enlarges, creates, and finances stories rooted in every benevolent of courage has freed more than 60 movies including Finch, Wonder, A Dog’s Purpose, Bridge to Terabithia, Chronicles of Narnia, Charlotte’s Web, Amazing Grace, Ray, and Holes. Most recently Walden Media created the acclaimed Apple TV+ restricted series Manhunt about the hunt for Abraham Lincoln’s assassin, John Wilkes Booth.
UK-based financing, sales, distribution and tageting company HanWay Films counts an upcoming spostponecessitate that integrates Rebecca Lenkiewicz’s honestorial debut Hot Milk which premiered in competition at the recent Berlinale; that pic starring Emma Mackey and Fiona Shaw. There’s also John McClean’s Tornado starring Koki, Tim Roth and Jack Lowden world premiering as the Opening Night Film of the 2025 Glasgow Film Festival; Uberto Passolini’s The Return starring Juliette Binoche and Ralph Fiennes which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival last year; and La Cocina which premiered in Competition at the 2024 Berlinale, written and honested by Alonso Ruizpalacios and starring Rooney Mara and Raúl Briones.
