Press Releases

NEW YORK (September 9, 2019) – Sony Pictures Classics announced today that they have acquired all rights in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Japan, China and worldwide airlines to Azazel Jacobs’ FRENCH EXIT. The film stars Oscar® nominee Michelle Pfeiffer and Oscar® nominee Lucas Hedges, and is set to start production this October in Montreal and Paris.  

Written by award-winning Canadian novelist Patrick deWitt, FRENCH EXIT is based on deWitt’sinternational bestselling book of the same title, which was shortlisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize. 

“My plan was to die before the money ran out,” says 60-year-old penniless Manhattan socialite Frances Price (Michelle Pfeiffer), but things didn’t go as planned. Her husband Franklin has been dead for 20 years and with his vast inheritance gone, she cashes in the last of her possessions and resolves to live out her twilight days anonymously in a modest apartment in Paris, accompanied by her directionless son Malcolm (Hedges) and the embodiment of Franklin in the form of 'Small Frank', the family cat.

  “To work with Sony Pictures Classics is a dream come true for me. They have given us so many beautiful, inspiring films over the years, and the incredible care and expertise with which they release them has always impressed me. As I prepare to embark on production, I am happy and relieved to know that French Exit will ultimately be in their hands,” said Azazel Jacobs.

"When I wrote the novel and screenplay I couldn't have imagined a more exciting cast to embody these characters. Sony Classics is a dream distributor consistently delivering smart, quality work. I'm honored to be working with this incredibly talented team.," said Patrick deWitt. 

"French Exit is the fresh, distinctive screenplay we've been looking for all year. Based on the spectacular best selling novel by Patrick DeWitt with settings in the New York and Paris we've grown to love, DeWitt’s screenplay has dialogue, witty and strong and rich characters in the mold of the best Hollywood comedies. This promises goldmine performances from Michelle Pfeiffer and Lucas Hedges. We couldn't be more pleased to be working with director Azazel Jacobs, a formidable voice in independent film," added Sony Pictures Classics. 

The Canadian/ Irish international co-production is produced by Rocket Science, Elevation Pictures, Screen Siren Pictures and Blinder Films. 

CAA Media Finance and Rocket Science brokered the deal with Sony Pictures Classics. 

Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions previously picked up all other international territories excluding Canada and Switzerland.