HanWay Films has boarded “The Third Parent,” the upcoming horror starring Rob Lowe (“The West Wing,” St. Elmo’s Fire”) alongside Crispin Glover (“Back to the Future,” “River’s Edge”), and Roselyn Sanchez (“Fantasy Island,” “Rush Hour 2”), and will launch international sales in Cannes.
The Walter Media Group film, which recently wrapped production, marks the feature debut of producer David Michaels, who writes and directs. Bleecker Street recently acquired the North American distribution rights and will release the film nationwide in theaters.
Bethany Milner (“The Trap”), Rafael de Belligny (BBC’s “Lord of the Flies”), and Jack Roberts (“Remnants”) round out the cast.
Based on the popular viral “creepypasta” series from writer Elias Witherow — which portrays the terrifying and other worldly figure of Tommy Taffy and his twisted actions as a parental disciplinarian — “The Third Parent” charts his invasion of the Hollow family and marks his nightmarish introduction to the big screen.
The story follows Mason (Lowe), a middle-aged father who lives with his wife Megan (Sanchez) and two children in an idyllic American suburban neighbourhood. From the outside their lives are pictures of the perfect nuclear family, though in private the everyday tensions of contemporary life are all too familiar.
On a seemingly serene 4th of July afternoon, the mysterious figure of Tommy Taffy (Glover) knocks on their door, triggering a reign of terror as he demands the family enact a series of terrifying and mysterious “life lessons.” Mason and Megan must obey every one of his commands as he threatens to harm their two children. Initially this twisted game provokes pure panic and a chaotic fight for survival, but as Tommy exerts extreme mental and physical pressure on the family through increasingly violent acts of subjugation, they learn to work as a unit to rid their lives once and for all of this monstrous invader.
“The Third Parent” is produced by Gary Michael Walters (“Whiplash,” “Nightcrawler,” “Legion,” “Drive”) for Walters Media Group, which retains ownership of the IP. Lowe also produces along with Spencer Young for Enfant Terrible and Jonathan Halperyn and Daniel Kresmery for Hero Squared. Executive producers include Jack Roberts for Lesnik Entertainment, Drake Dowd and Kristen Gilot-Dowd for Dowd Films, and Andrew Karpen and Kent Sanderson for Bleecker Street.
Heads of department attached include Jérôme Eltabet as editor (“The Substance,” “Revenge”); Tim Maurice-Jones as cinematographer (“Speak No Evil,” “Woman in Black,” “Kick Ass,” “Snatch”); Evan Webber as production designer (“Shape of Water,” “Handmaid’s Tale,” “Pan’s Labyrinth”) and Butch Vig, who has worked with Nirvana, Foo Fighters and Garbage, as composer.
“We are thrilled to bring Third Parent to the Cannes market and hope to unveil some footage to buyers,” said Gabrielle Stewart, CEO HanWay Films. “Tommy Taffy is fantastic IP for a horror series and we are already working hand in glove with our friends at Bleecker St to ensure we deliver exciting materials to back strong theatrical releases.”
CEO Walters Media Group Gary Michaels Walters added: “I’m extremely proud of David Michaels and the uniquely terrifying film that he and our incredible cast and crew have created. I’m excited to have Gabrielle and the HanWay team present our work to the world.”
