Portlandia co-creator Jonathan Krisel makes his feature debut with Hey Bear, a bold revenge comedy starring Mia Goth (Frankenstein), Zach Galifianakis (The Hangover Trilogy) and Dan Stevens (I’m Your Man).
Written by Carrie Kemper, the Emmy-winning author of “Beef,” “Hey Bear” is pitched as a “rage-coming” story that boasts off-beat comedy about a woman taking revenge on the bear that ate her husband. Alix Madigan (Winter’s Bone) will produce.
“Hey Bear” will be presented to buyers at AFM with international sales handled by HanWay Films and North America represented by WME Independent & UTA Independent Film Group.
Goss stars Claire, who has “always lived her life relying solely on the expectations of others. She married Gregory (Dan Stevens) and fulfilled his wish to spend her life studying bears in Glacier National Park, even if she was away for months at a time.” During the visit, a grizzly bear nicknamed Mr. Cranky by Gregory bites Claire to death. After being told by a park ranger that Cranky is, Claire is euthanized and the bear is simply transported to another national park to live out its best life. When the normally docile Claire learns that he has been sent, she decides to team up with socially awkward park ranger Pat (Galifianakis) to assassinate Mr. Cranky, but Pat has dark motives of his own, and death and truth lurk in every tree. This mission takes her on an ultimately uplifting journey of empowerment and self-discovery. Set in a breathtaking natural landscape, this “Rage Comes” story is a darkly comedic roller coaster full of originality and surprises. ”
“There’s nothing more thrilling than coming across a project that breaks barriers in terms of originality. As absurd and crazy as the premise of this story is, you’ll always be able to completely empathize and empathize with Claire’s journey through grief and figuring out how to take ownership of her life again,” said Gabriel Stewart, CEO of Hanway Films. “Mia Goth, Dan Stevens and Zach Galifianakis are a dream team who make us laugh, move us and leave us gasping with shock and awe,” Stewart continued.
Executive producers are Carrie Kemper and Danica Radvanoff. Krisel is represented by UTA and Mosaic. Kemper is repped by UTA. Goss is represented by WME’s Curtis Brown and Austin’s Jackoway. Galifianakis is repped by Brillstein Entertainment Partners and UTA. Stevens is repped by CAA and Julian Belfrage Associates.
