Stellan Skarsgård Joins Simon Pegg And Christopher Plummer In HECTOR AND THE SEARCH FOR HAPPINESS

Actor Stellan Skarsgård (THE AVENGERS, THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO, MAMMA MIA!) has joined the cast of Peter Chelsom’s drama comedy HECTOR AND THE SEARCH FOR HAPPINESS, it was announced today by The Solution Entertainment Group’s (“The Solution”) founders and partners, Lisa Wilson and Myles Nestel, and producers Judy Tossell of Egoli Tossell Film and Christine Haebler of Screen Siren Pictures.

Skarsgård joins the previously announced Simon Pegg (MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – GHOST PROTOCOL), Rosamund Pike (upcoming JACK REACHER) and Oscar winner Christopher Plummer (BEGINNERS). Also appearing in a cameo will be cult German actress Marianne Sägebrecht (BAGDAD CAFÈ).

Based on the bestselling novel of the same name by François Lelord, the script is written by Maria von Heland, Chelsom and Tinker Lindsay. The film is a German/Canadian co-production produced by Judy Tossell for Egoli Tossell Film and Christine Haebler for Screen Siren Pictures, with Jens Meurer and Trish Dolman executive producing. Principal photography is slated to begin in January 2013. Wild Bunch Germany is co-producing and distributing in German-speaking Europe and Entertainment One has acquired all rights for Canada.

The Solution is handling international rights to the film and is actively selling the title to buyers at the American Film Market, currently underway. UTA is representing US rights.

Skarsgård has been cast as EDWARD – a very rich, jaded banker whom Hector befriends on his flight to China; Sägebrecht makes an appearance as one of Hector’s favorite patients, MADAME IRINA, a clairvoyant who has lost her ability to see into the future.

The film revolves around Hector (Pegg), an eccentric yet irresistible London psychiatrist in crisis: he’s going nowhere and his patients are just not getting any happier! Until one day, armed with buckets of courage and child-like curiosity, Hector breaks out of his sheltered vacuum of a life into a global quest to find out if happiness exists. More importantly, if it exists for Hector. And so begins an exotic, dangerous and hysterical journey.

One of the gurus Hector meets along the way is Professor Coreman (Plummer), leading expert for Happiness Studies at UCLA. Rosamund Pike will play Hector’s long term girlfriend, CLARA.

“Skarsgård and Sägebrecht are extremely engaging and powerful actors who round out the already impressive cast attached to the film,” said Wilson and Nestel. “Their casting adds weight to the project and continues to build buzz and buyer appeal for HECTOR at AFM,” they continued.

”We are delighted by the level of talent surrounding this very special film. HECTOR meets an extraordinarily diverse group of characters on his travels. This cast will make each of those encounters extremely memorable.” says producer Judy Tossell.

Stellan Skarsgård has appeared in several Hollywood blockbusters including most recently as Erik Selvig in Disney’s THE AVENGERS, the No. 3 highest grossing movie of all time and Kenneth Branagh’s THOR, distributed by Paramount Pictures. He will reprise his role as Selvig in THOR: THE DARK WORLD, currently in production. His credits include his role as Bootstrap Bill in the PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN global franchise opposite Johnny Depp, THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO, ANGELS & DEMONS, MAMMA MIA! and GOOD WILL HUNTING. He is currently in production on Lars Von Trier’s highly anticipated NYMPHOMANIAC opposite Charlotte Gainsbourg and Shia LaBeouf.

Marianne Sägebrecht is a German actress who won the Golden Ciak Award for Best Actress at the Venice Film Festival for her performance in MARTHA AND ME (MARTHA AND MOI). She is well known for her roles in Percy Adlon’s BAGDAD CAFÉ with CCH Pounder and Jack Palance and Danny DeVito’s THE WAR OF THE ROSES with Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner. Her other feature film credits include MONA MUST DIE, ROSALIE GOES SHOPPING, THE OGRE and LEFT LUGGAGE.

British-born Chelsom began his directing career with break out British films HEAR MY SONG and FUNNY BONES. These were followed by a string of romantic, feelgood hits including SERENDIPITY starring John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale, SHALL WE DANCE? starring Richard Gere and the award winning THE MIGHTY starring Sharon Stone.

In addition to HECTOR AND THE SEARCH FOR HAPPINESS, The Solution’s AFM slate includes the newly announced romantic comedy 5 TO 7 starring Diane Kruger and Anton Yelchin produced with Mockingbird Pictures; TWO NIGHT STAND currently shooting with Miles Teller, Analeigh Tipton and Jessica Szohr; WRITERS starring Greg Kinnear, Jennifer Connelly and Lily Collins and produced by Judy Cairo and Informant Media; the action thriller NOVEMBER MAN starring Pierce Brosnan and Dominic Cooper, to be directed by Roger Donaldson; GRAND PIANO, starring Elijah Wood and John Cusack, currently filming and produced by Adrian Guerra and Rodrigo Cortés the police thriller FELONY starring Joel Edgerton, Tom Wilkinson and Jai Courtney.