“Pippa Lee” Picked Up

A scene from Rebecca Miller's "The Private Lives of Pippa Lee." Image courtesy of Screen Gems.

Screen Media has acquired the U.S. distribution rights to Rebecca Miller’s “The Private Lives of Pippa Lee” for release in late October. The film - which had its world premiere at the 2009 Berlin Film Festival - was adapted from Miller’s book of the same name. It has an all star cast, including Robin Wright Penn, Winona Ryder, Alan Arkin, Maria Bello, Julianne Moore, Keanu Reeves, Monica Bellucci, and Blake Lively.

“I’m extremely appreciative of Screen Media’s enthusiasm for ‘The Private Lives of Pippa Lee,” Miller said in a statement.

The film follows Pippa Lee (Wright Penn),  the devoted wife of an accomplished publisher (Arkin) thirty years her senior, the mother of two grown children, and a trusted friend and confidant to all who cross her path. But as Pippa dutifully follows her husband to a new life in a staid Connecticut retirement community, her world and the persona she has built over the course of her marriage is tested. 

“Rebecca’s adaptation of her novel features brilliant performances from a top notch cast and is incredibly well-done,” Robert Baruc, President of Screen Media Films, said in a statement. “The material is both touching and funny and we are thrilled to bring it into the marketplace.”

The deal was negotiated by CAA, which also packaged and arranged financing for the film.  Baruc and David Fannon, Executive-Vice President of Screen Media Ventures, negotiated on behalf of Screen Media.

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