The original film starred Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner as a couple who engage in a vicious battle of wills, trying every trick in the book to drive each other out of their palatial estate during their divorce.
Directed by Danny DeVito, the film earned a BAFTA and three Golden Globe nominations, including for Best Motion Picture, among other accolades. The movie was based on the book of the same name by Warren Adler.
The upcoming new version will be a ‘reimagining’ of the story called ‘The Roses,’ and has been in development since 2017, according to an announcement in Deadline.
The Searchlight Pictures film will follow ‘picture-perfect couple’ Theo (Cumberbatch) and Ivy (Colman): “successful careers, great kids, an enviable sex life. But underneath the façade of the perfect family is a tinderbox of competition and resentments that’s ignited when Theo’s professional dreams come crashing down”.
Director Jay Roach (Austin Powers, Meet the Parents) will take on the project for Searchlight Pictures, the film written by Tony McNamara (Poor Things) .
“’The Roses’ is a wildly funny, bigger than life, and yet deeply human story,” said Searchlight president Matthew Greenfield on announcing the production. “With Jay at the helm, and Benedict and Olivia and Tony, we have a dream team bringing it to life.”
Cumberbatch and Coleman will also have producing roles with their respective production companies, Cumberbatch with his company SunnyMarch and Coleman with her South of the River Pictures.
