A24 Releasing James Franco’s ‘The Disaster Artist’ During Awards Season
James Franco’sThe Disaster Artisthas gone from New Line to A24. While New Line still holds the international rights, the distributor behind last year’s Best Picture winner,Moonlight,will handle the domestic release of Franco’s look at the making ofTommy Wiseau’sThe Room. A24 has set a December release date for the film.
Below, find out more about theDisaster Artistrelease date.
Franco’s adaptation of actorGreg Sestero’s book has a limited release date scheduled forDecember 1. The following week,The Disaster Artistwill expand to more theaters. The movie had a successful premiere two months ago at SXSW, where the festival-goers gave the film a warm reception. Our managing editor, Jacob Hall,praised Franco’s filmfor its well-earned sincerity:
The most surprising thing aboutThe Disaster Artist, James Franco’s adaptation of Greg Sestero’s book of the same name, is that it doesn’t have a mean-spirited bone in its body. Here’s a film about the making ofThe Room, one of the worst and most baffling movies to ever achieve cult infamy, told with sincerity, sweetness, and pure affection. Franco isn’t here to laugh atThe Room– he’s here to laugh with it.The Disaster Artisthas no scorn for its subject. Instead, it is fascinated by this impossible-t0-believe tale and the impossible-to-believe movie it produced. No irony. No scorn. Only love.
He also had high praise for Franco’s performance, which sounds like far more than an impersonation:
It’s thing of mesmerizing comedic beauty, a performance that is so funny because it is sad and so pathetic and so strange and so rabidly determined. It’s through Franco’s work that we first discover thatThe Disaster Artistis not a fringe joke assembled by a group of comedians looking to strike a few low blows. This Tommy Wiseau, grotesque and pitiful and unpredictable and, somehow, strangely likable guy, is a tremendous character.
There was some speculation New Line wouldn’t distribute the film domestically after taking a while to announce a release date, even after the work-in-progress cut impressed those in attendance at SXSW. Thankfully, A24 has swooped in and made a deal to release the movie, which sounds right up their wheelhouse. In their hands, a film as specific asThe Disaster Artistshould reach its audience.
Franco’s film is now going to come out almosttwo yearsafter filming began. Fingers crossed we’ll also receive some good news soon for his long-awaited adaptation ofthe remarkableZeroville, which is an even more wild story about filmmaking thanThe Disaster Artist. That RabbitBandini project has yet to premiere and find a distributor.
The Disaster Artistopens in select theatersDecember 1and gets a wider release onDecember 8.
