SPWAG Conquers TIFF's "Defendor" for U.S. and Other Territories

U.S. and most international rights to writer/director Peter Stebbings' "Defendor" starring Woody Harrelson, Kat Dennings, Elias Koteas and Sandra Oh have been picked up by Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions Group. The film made its world premiere over the weekend at the Toronto International Film Festival.

The deal was negotiated by Jeff Sackman on behalf of Darius Films, and Tim Brown on behalf of sales company Joker Films, Cinetic Media repped the U.S. rights to the film. Alperovich and Michael Helfand, SPWAG SVP of Business Affairs, negotiated the deal on behalf of SPWAG.

Reality intersects with delusion in the mind of Arthur Poppington (Harrelson), a regular man who adopts a superhero persona known as 'Defendor' and combs the city streets at night in search of his arch enemy, "captain industry." In his attempts to combat crime and bring down this drug and weapons dealer whom he mistakenly blames for the death of his mother, Defendor ends up befriending a young prostitute, Katerina Debrofkowitz (Dennings).

"Making this film was a great experience," commented Tabarrok in a statement. "Peter did an incredible job and the cast performances are outstanding. In addition, we are ecstatic to be able to work with the Sony team in insuring the best possible distribution for Defendor."

Darius Films is a prolific film and television production company with offices in Los Angeles and Toronto. Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions Group (SPWAG) is a Sony Pictures Entertainment company.