The Playmaker has joined as the international sales agent for Don’t Kill Loretta, the new horror film that marks the English language debut of German writer-director Oliver Kienle, whose credits include the hit series Bad Banks and Netflix’s martial arts film Sixty Minutes.
The film is a suspense-driven supernatural horror story set deep in the German forests, produced by Babylon Berlin producers X Filme Creative Pool and Dor Film in collaboration with ZDF and Erfttal Film.
Don’t Kill Loretta features a young, international cast, including 2023 Toronto Film Festival rising star Kudakwashe Lutendo (Backspot), George Ferrier (The Hunting Wives), Sharahiya Carter (Wu-Tang: An American Saga), Leonie Wesselaw (How to Sell Drugs Online Fast), and Lily Mo Sheen (Massive Talent). Timothy Innes (The Last Kingdom).
Set against the eerie backdrop of a remote German forest, the story follows a group of young Americans in the beauty and fashion industry as they attend a wellness retreat. After a night of excess, they encounter a terrifying presence in the darkness. What begins as a supposed hallucination quickly escalates into a nightmare as one of the characters undergoes disturbing physical changes, leading to a life-or-death fight.
The film was produced by Genia Krassnig, Danny Krausz and Florian Krügel of DOR Film, co-produced by Jorgo Narjes and Uwe Schott of X Filme Creative Pool, and co-produced by ZDF and Klaus Dohle of Erfttal Film. Markus Reinecke (Erfttal Film) is associate producer.
The film is supported by ÖFI+ and FFA. X Verleih will distribute in Germany and Filmladen will be responsible for Austria. ZDF is a German broadcasting station. Theatrical release is scheduled for early 2027.
Special makeup was done by Twilight Creations (The Matrix, Game of Thrones, All Quiet on the Western Front) and Atelier Braunhofer (Babylon Berlin).
“The Playmaker team is incredibly grateful and excited to be working again with our long-time partners at Dor Film, X Filme, and most of all with our incredible director Oliver Kienle. We have been huge fans of Oliver’s incredible work since our first collaboration with Oliver over a decade ago, on Four Hands, and his English-language debut Don’t Kill. “We’re proud to present “Loretta” with a super cool, young, international cast, lots of suspense, and a really angry spirit that promises to heat up your screens!” said Ramona Sale, Head of Acquisitions at The Playmakers.
“We’re thrilled to be releasing Oliver Kienle’s Don’t Kill Loretta with The Playmakers at Cannes. It’s a bold, modern take on the genre and an homage to the iconic horror films of the early 2000s,” said producers Genia Krasnig, Danny Krauss, Florian Krugel, Giorgo Narges and Uwe Schott.
Kienle’s first feature film, Stronger Than Blood (2010), received numerous accolades, including the Bavarian Film Award, the Max Ophuls Film Festival, and the First Steps Award. As a writer and director, Kienle produced another feature film titled Four Hands, which was screened at numerous international film festivals, including Chicago and Tallinn.
Kienle produced and wrote two seasons of the international drama series “Bad Banks.” The series received critical acclaim when it first aired in 2018 and received accolades including a nomination at the 2019 International Emmy Awards.
In 2020, Kienle wrote and directed Germany’s first Netflix film, Ishi & Ossi, a romantic comedy that became one of Netflix’s most successful German-language productions, and most recently directed Netflix’s martial arts film Sixty Minutes (2024), which became one of the most successful non-English language Netflix productions worldwide.
