“Hamilton” actor Andrew Chappelle will make his directorial debut with “I’m Gonna Kill You,” a queer erotic short starring Tony Award nominee James Cusati-Moyer.
The cast also includes Philippa Soo (‘Hamilton’), Johnny Sibilly (‘The Hux’), Michael Graceffa (‘Phantasmus’, ‘Death Becomes Her’), Angus O’Brien (‘Boots’), Brandon Black (‘Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story’) and Sarah Lindsay (‘American Last’).
Chappelle will direct from his own script.
The film’s official logline reads: “Set in the far future, ‘I’m Gonna Kill You’ takes place in an ‘all-gay colony’ and follows the internal conflict between lovers Cal (Cusati-Moyer) and Spectre (Gracefa), where the colony’s remaining members ultimately pay the price for their twisted game.”
Sybilly, O’Brien and Black play a trio of friends who find themselves in the spotlight on the colony. Sue and Lindsey lend their voices to this short story as the Pairing Counselor and Cooper Clone, respectively.
Creative agency Juxtapose Studio is leading the production with a $25,000 investment from Troye Sivan and Grindr’s Tap or Block campaign. The film also received a $5,000 production grant obtained through Pitch, Please! It was submitted to competition at the 2024 InsideOUT Toronto Film Festival. Google’s Kate Aitken will serve as executive producer.
“As we developed the idea during COVID-19, we were drawn to exploring the idea of living in smaller communities, the kind of networks that were reduced during the peak of the pandemic,” Chappelle said. “My goal with this project is to thoughtfully expand the thriller genre within the canon of queer film. I’m proud to partner with Juxtapose Studios and bring my vision to life with world-class actors. ‘I’m Gonna Kill You’ is an exploration of the destructive power of jealousy that will thrill and chill.”
Luke Anderson, founding partner of Juxtapose Studio, said: “Juxtapose Studio was founded with the intention of investing advertising revenue into elevating gay, women, and POC storytelling. We’re in a world where ‘inclusivity’ has become a dirty word, so it wasn’t particularly easy to bring one of the first highbrow LGBTQ+ erotic thrillers to life…but we hope ‘Rivals’ can captivate people.’ Given the zeitgeist, we know that Andrew’s great film deserves a seat at the table diversifying this popular escapist genre. ”
Chappelle made his screenwriting debut with Taran Killam’s 2023 film The Fanatic. This short comedy won the LGBTQ Audience Award at SCAD. Chappelle currently co-hosts the GLAAD-nominated podcast “Tactful Pettiness” with Cody Rigsby and is repped by Cornerstone Talent Agency.
Mr. Cusati-Moyer is repped by Untitled Entertainment and Goldman, Genow, Shenkman, Smelkinson & Christopher. Graceffa is repped by TMT Entertainment Group and Bella Agency.
Sibilly is represented by Innovative Artists, Authentic Management, Paul Desisto Talent Management, and Felker Toczek Suddleson McGinnis Ryann LLP.
Mr. O’Brien is repped by Paradigm Talent Agency.
Black is repped by Michael Green Artists Agency, Slash Management, Sutton Barth & Venari, and Arise Artists Agency.
Mr. Hsu is repped by UTA, Anonymous Content, Jackoway Austin Tyerman Wertheimer Mandelbaum Morris Bernstein Tratner Auerbach Heinig Jamie Levine Sample & Klein. Lindsay is managed by Patrick Corcoran of PCM International.
Check out the trailer for “I’m Gonna Kill You” below.
