Sony Pictures Classics has acquired rights to Niki Byrne’s “The Julia Set,” starring Chase Infiniti, following the film’s world premiere at TIFF.
The film, written and directed by Byrne, was one of the festival’s breakouts, thanks in large part to Infiniti’s commanding performance. The “One Battle After Another” and “The Testaments” star earned rave reviews — including in Variety — for her turn as Julia Fischer, a math prodigy navigating being the youngest, most gifted student in her elite prep course, while falling into an abusive romantic relationship with her teaching assistant, Pascal (Christopher Briney). Amid those pressures, the film’s synopsis explains, “Julia must find the strength to follow the path she was destined to take.”
Jason Isaacs and Gillian Anderson also star as Pascal’s parents, with Nina Hoss, Carmen Ejogo, Chloe Bailey, Nico Hiraga, Liz Lin and Alex Dillard rounding out the acclaimed cast.
“Growing up, I didn’t understand that people made movies. I thought they were the purview of the gods, that they fell out of the sky, and if we were lucky, we caught them,” Byrne said in a statement. “For 35 years, my entire lifetime, Michael Barker, Tom Bernard and their team at Sony Pictures Classics have made sure audiences catch the movies worth catching. I couldn’t be prouder to add ‘The Julia Set’ to their extraordinary library, and to know it will be seen the way movies are meant to be seen: in a darkened theater, together.”
Sony Pictures Classics, led by Michael Barker and Tom Bernard, will distribute the film in the United States, Benelux, Switzerland, Italy, Scandinavia, Spain, United Kingdom, Eastern Europe (excluding Poland), Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Israel and Asia (excluding Singapore). The studio is planning a theatrical release next year.
“With subjects as wide-ranging as feminism, romantic infatuation, class differences, familial conflict, bullying and love, and even what it means to be a math prodigy, Niki Byrne’s emotionally engaging and impressive directorial debut gives meaning to living in the modern world,” the Sony Pictures Classics team added.
“Seeing the enthusiastic response at TIFF confirms what promises to be a great theatrical success as well as cements that Chase Infiniti’s much-lauded performance in ‘One Battle After Another’ was no accident,” the studio’s statement continued. “She is at the center of this deeply rich, even suspensefully entertaining film supported by an amazing cast.”
The deal was negotiated between Sony Pictures Classics and Gersh.