Some studios reportedly were interested in the coming-of-age movie directed by Rick Famiyuwa before Open Road and Sony emerge as the winner in the bidding war.
- Jan 26, 2015
AceShowbiz - Open Road and Sony Pictures Entertainment have won the bidding war for the comedy "Dope" at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. According to THR, some companies such as The Weinstein Co., Lionsgate and Relativity competed to buy the rights to the movie before Open Road, which will release it domestically, and Sony, which will release the movie internationally, acquired it with approximately $7 million.
"Dope" premiered at the festival on Saturday. It tells the story of a high school student played by Shameik Moore who wants to get into Harvard. Directed and written by Rick Famiyuwa, the comedy wowed the audience at the premiere.
"Dope is Go meets Risky Business meets True Romance meets Fingers, with a little bit of Boyz N the Hood and We Are the Best! thrown in," Vulture wrote. They also commented that the movie managed to tackle various topics such as celebrity in the age of social media as well as academic issues, adding, "That Famiyuwa and his cast can keep so many of these balls in the air without everything collapsing into an inchoate mess is remarkable."
The movie also features appearances from rapper A$AP Rocky as a drug dealer named Dom and Zoe Kravitz who plays Nakia. Tony Revolori, Kiersey Clemons and Kimberly Elise are also among the cast members.
