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Nicholas Jarecki Opioid Drama ‘Crisis’ Gary Oldman, Armie Hammer, Evangeline Lilly – Deadline

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EXCLUSIVE: The indie film upstart Quiver Distribution has acquired U.S. rights to Arbitrage writer/director Nicholas Jarecki’s dramatic thriller Crisis. Oscar winner Gary Oldman, Armie Hammer and Evangeline Lilly lead an ensemble cast that includes Greg Kinnear, Michelle Rodriguez,  Luke Evans, Lily-Rose Depp, Scott “Kid Cudi” Mescudi, Duke Nicholson, Veronica Ferres and Martin Donovan. Quiver will release the film in theatres nationwide on February 26, 2021 followed by a digital and on-demand release on March 5, 2021.

Armie Hammer in “Crisis”
Quiver Distribution

The film will be qualified for inclusion in awards season. Pic sets out to do for the opioid crisis what Traffic did for cocaine and the war on drugs during the crack scourge. In a series of interwoven story lines: a drug trafficker arranges a multi-cartel Fentanyl smuggling operation; an architect recovering from an Oxycodone addiction tracks down the truth behind her son’s disappearance; a university professor battles unexpected revelations about his employer, a pharmaceutical company bringing a new “non-addictive” painkiller to market.

“Nick brought his brilliant script to life in this topical and highly entertaining film,” said Quiver Co-Presidents Berry Meyerowitz and Jeff Sackman. “His look at the international drug war through the prism of profiteers, law enforcement, and all those caught in between is a powerful, thrilling story that we’re proud to bring to audiences.”

“The devastating impact of the opioid epidemic reaches all corners of society,” Jarecki said. “Each day brings a new revelation about what corporations, traffickers, and governments knew about the madness all along. I’m grateful to our outstanding cast whose nuanced performances put a human face on this urgent problem that needs our attention now.”

Crisis is Jarecki’s follow to Arbitrage, which still remains the highest grossing independent film to be released day and date, back when that was a thing. The film earned a Golden Globe nomination for Richard Gere.

Evangeline Lilly Crisis
Evangeline Lilly in “Crisis”
Quiver Distribution

Jarecki and Cassian Elwes (Dallas Buyers Club) who financed together through Jarecki’s Green Room Films. They shot the film in 2019 and Jarecki edited during the pandemic.

Gary Oldman is executive producer with Douglas Urbanski, Michael Suppes, Tony Hsieh, Mohammed Al Turki, Lisa Wilson, William Rosenfeld, Sam Slater, David Bernon, and Samuel Reich. Co-executive producers are Kean Cronin and Robert Kapp.

The film is a Canadian-Belgian co-production of Les Productions LOD Inc. and Bideford Productions in association with Green Room Films, Tuesday Films, Martingale Films, Flying Horse Productions, Construction Film GmbH, Caviar Film Financing, and Burn Later Productions.

Larry Greenberg negotiated the deal on behalf of Quiver Distribution with the filmmakers.

Quiver Distribution is loading up with a nice first slate. That includes the Viggo Mortensen-directed Falling starring Mortensen, Lance Henriksen and Laura Linney; Unjoo Moon’s I Am Woman starring Tilda Cobham Hervey, Danielle Macdonald and Evan Peters; Chick Fight starring Malin Akerman and Bella Thorne; and Becky starring Lulu Wilson and Kevin James.

Crisis was first unveiled during the European Film Market in early 2019, and there are numerous financing partners overseeing distribution internationally. That includes Universal, which has majority of world territories, Warner Bros in the UK, Fox in Asia, Sony for Airlines, and Wild Bunch in France.

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