Millennium Media And Rod Davis Lurie Reunite For WWII Action Feature Lucky Strike
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Scott Eastwood, Colin Hanks, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, And Taylor John Smith Set To Star
Photo Credit: Jon Kopaloff
Millennium Media is reuniting with The Outpost filmmaker Rod Davis Lurie. They will tackle Lucky Strike, a WWII Battle of the Bulge action feature. The film will star The Outpost alums Scott Eastwood and Taylor John Smith. It will also feature Oscar-nominee Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor (King Richard, Origin) and Colin Hanks (The Offer, Nuremberg, Friend of the Family). The film will start principal photography in November at Millennium Media’s Nu Boyana Studios in Bulgaria. Millennium Media will launch sales in Toronto with UTA Independent Film Group co-representing U.S. sales
Written by Marc Frydman (Last Seen Alive) & Rod Davis Lurie, the film is based on an interview Frydman did. He conducted the interview when he was 16 with a WWII veteran. Lucky Strike follows a wounded American soldier (Eastwood). The soldier struggles to survive behind enemy lines in war-torn Belgium. This happens during the Battle of the Bulge. The Battle of the Bulge was a surprise attack. It was the last major German offensive of WWII. It was the largest and bloodiest single battle fought by the Allies during the war.
“Because of Marc’s intimate connection to this story and my military background, this is very personal for both of us. The Battle of the Bulge is one of the most famous conflicts in world history. It is full of inspiration and almost unfathomable courage. We hope to encapsulate that in this one man’s journey. It’s one hell of a tale,” said Lurie.
“We are getting the band back together! Rod is a phenomenal filmmaker. Given his military background, he can take these larger-than-life true stories and show sensitivity and humanity. At the same time, he brings in the thrills and action. I am excited to be working with him again. Scott is always charismatic, likable, and one tough son of you-know-what,” said Jonathan Yunger, President of Millennium Media. “Adding the incredibly multi-talented Colin Hanks, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor and Taylor John Smith creates a must-see viewing experience.”
Photo Credit: Sam Jones
Photo Courtesy: Rod Davis Lurie
This marks Rod Davis Lurie’s second collaboration with Millennium Media. His last film The Outpost (starring Scott Eastwood, Caleb Landry Jones, and Orlando Bloom) was a true Afghanistan war epic. It was set during the 2009 Battle of Kamdesh. The film is based on CNN anchor Jake Tapper’s 2012 bestseller. The film holds a 91% on Rotten Tomatoes. Despite being released during the height of COVID-19 in 2020, the film was a smash hit both critically and commercially.
Before he segued to filmmaking, Lurie graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1984. He went on to serve for four years as a Combat Arms officer in the U.S. Army. His film and television credits include the Academy Award and Golden Globe Award-nominated political thriller The Contender. It stars Joan Allen, Jeff Bridges, Gary Oldman, and Christian Slater. In television, Lurie created the series Commander In Chief. It was nominated for the Best Drama Series Golden Globe. Geena Davis won the Best Actress Golden Globe for her depiction of the first female President of the United States.
Scott Eastwood is one of Hollywood’s most highly sought-after leading men. Eastwood currently stars alongside Tyrese Gibson and the late Ray Liotta in 1992. The film is directed by Ariel Vroman and is set against the Los Angeles riots. Upcoming, Eastwood will be seen in the kidnapping drama Stolen Girl alongside Kate Beckinsale. He will be in the action film Alarum opposite Sylvester Stallone. He will also feature in the sequel to the acclaimed 2017 crime drama Wind River: Rising.
He was most recently seen in Fast X, the tenth main installment in the Fast & Furious franchise. He also appeared in Amazon’s romantic comedy I Want You Back alongside Charlie Day, Jenny Slate, and Gina Rodriguez. Additional credits include Guy Ritchie’s action thriller, Wrath of Man. He also appeared in David Hackl’s Dangerous and Rod Lurie’s The Outpost as decorated war hero “Clint Romesha.” He was also in Steven DeKnight’s Pacific Rim: Uprising for Legendary. He starred in F. Gary Gray’s The Fate of The Furious for Universal. He was in Oliver Stone’s Snowden. He also appeared in David Ayer’s Suicide Squad and the war drama, Fury. Eastwood co-starred alongside Britt Robertson. He played champion bull-rider ‘Luke Collins’ in the romantic drama The Longest Ride. The film is based on the novel by Nicholas Sparks.
Eastwood is represented by UTA, LBI Entertainment, Viewpoint and Goodman, Genow, Schenkman, Smelkinson & Christopher.
Colin Hanks most recently shot Nuremberg with Russell Crowe, Rami Malek and Michael Shannon. He can be seen in the heartfelt romantic comedy and indie feature And Mrs., leading opposite Billie Lourd and Aisling Bea as well as the animated feature Orion and the Dark for Netflix. Hanks also stars in Peacock’s miniseries A Friend of the Family. He stars alongside Jake Lacy and Anna Paquin. The series is from Nick Antosca and director Eliza Hittman. It is based on the harrowing documentary “Abducted in Plain Sight.” Colin played a lead role in Michael Tolkin’s limited series The Offer for Paramount+, alongside Miles Teller. Additionally, Hanks was in Ryan Murphy’s ACS: Impeachment, where he co-starred opposite Beanie Feldstein, Sarah Paulson, Clive Owen and Edie Falco.
On the big screen, Colin reprised his pivotal role from Sony’s box office smash hit Jumanji: The Next Level. Prior to that, he starred in the long running CBS comedy series Life in Pieces. He can previously be seen in Parkland opposite Zac Efron and Paul Giamatti. He was also in Anne Fletcher’s The Guilt Trip opposite Seth Rogen and Barbra Streisand. Hanks received both a Golden Globe and an Emmy nomination. These were for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie. This recognition was for his incredible work on FX’s FARGO. Up next for Colin is Nobody 2 with Bob Odenkirk. UTA, MGMT Management, and Brecheen Feldman Breimer Silver Thompson represent Hanks.
Oscar-nominated actress Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor can currently be seen in The Supremes at Earl’s All-You-Can-Eat for Searchlight/Hulu. She also stars in Titus Kaphar’s feature directorial debut Exhibiting Forgiveness. The much-anticipated film adaptation of the Pulitzer prize-winning novel Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead features her as well. Aunjanue’s performance as Oracene Price was inspired. Oracene Price is the mother to mega superstars Venus and Serena Williams. Aunjanue played this role in the Warner Bros feature King Richard. She received a Best Supporting Actress nomination at the Academy Awards. It also won the National Board of Review, HCA, and AAFCA’s Best Supporting Actress awards.
Aunjanue additionally secured Best Supporting Actress nominations from the BAFTAs. She was also nominated by Critics Choice. She received nominations from the Golden Globes and the NAACP Image Awards among others for her work as Oracene. On television, she was recently seen in Justified: City Primeval opposite Timothy Olyphant at FX/HULU. Aunjanue has also received two Emmy Awards. The first was for the Netflix limited series When They See Us. The second was for her performance in the JJ Abrams and Jordan Peele-produced HBO series Lovecraft Country. Ellis-Taylor is represented by UTA. TMT Entertainment Group.
Taylor John Smith is proving to be one of the most exciting young emerging talents. He was recently seen in Sony’s box-office hit Where the Crawdads Sing opposite Daisy Edgar-Jones. He just wrapped Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza’s film Warfare for A24. He received rave reviews for playing the emotionally-charged John Keene in Gillian Flynn’s limited series Sharp Objects for HBO. He starred opposite Amy Adams and under the direction of Jean-Marc Vallee. He was named one of Variety’s 10 Actors to Watch.
CAA, Vybe Trybe, and Felker Toczek Suddleson McGinnis Ryan LLP represent John Smith.
Millennium Media is having a busy end of year with two films coming out. One of them is the Megan Fox AI thriller Subservience. It will be available for streaming this month. The other film is their highly anticipated revamp of the Hellboy comic books. This is the folklore horror film Hellboy: The Crooked Man based on the original comic book by creator Mike Mignola. It stars Jack Kesy and comes out this fall.
Producers for Lucky Strike are Marc Frydman, Rod Davis Lurie, Millennium Media’s Jonathan Yunger, Yariv Lerner, and Les Weldon. Millennium Media’s Avi Lerner, Trevor Short, and JJ Nugent are executive producers alongside Julie Kroll and Lati Grobman.
ABOUT MILLENNIUM MEDIA
Millennium Media. Inc. is one of the longest-running independent film companies in Hollywood. It has established itself as a leader in creating multi-billion-dollar box office action franchises. It has also produced acclaimed independent films. The full-service entertainment company finances, produces and sells films worldwide. It has a production facility, Nu Boyana Studios, in Bulgaria. The studio hosts international and Hollywood productions.
Millennium is best known for the box office hits The Expendables franchise. It is also known for the Fallen franchise and The Hitman’s Bodyguard franchise. Other hits include Mechanic: Resurrection and the successful reboot of the Rambo franchise, Rambo: Last Blood. It has also produced the acclaimed independent films The Outpost. This includes Rod Davis Lurie’s The Outpost, Tesla starring Ethan Hawke, and Blackbird starring Susan Sarandon and Kate Winslet. Upcoming releases include the highly anticipated comic book adaptation Red Sonja starring Matilda Lutz, Wallis Day, and Robert Sheehan. The sci-fi thriller Subservience stars Megan Fox and Michele Morrone. Hellboy: The Crooked Man is based on the original comic book by creator Mike Mignola and stars Jack Kesy. Guns Up stars Kevin James and Christina Ricci.
