Forest Whitaker And Vince Vaughn To Star In Roland Joffé THE ARCHBISHOP AND THE ANTICHRIST

Oscar winner Forest Whitaker (LEE DANIELS’ THE BUTLER, THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND) and Vince Vaughn (upcoming HACKSAW RIDGE, INTO THE WILD) are set to star in the drama THE ARCHBISHOP AND THE ANTICHRIST to be directed by two time Oscar nominee writer/director Roland Joffé (THE KILLING FIELDS, THE SCARLET LETTER), it was announced today by Emmy Award nominated producer Craig Baumgarten (HOOK, NEVER BACK DOWN).

Joffé co-wrote the screenplay with Michael Ashton. Currently in pre-production, THE ARCHBISHOP AND THE ANTICHRIST will begin shooting in early 2016.

13 Films is handling international rights and will introduce the project to buyers at the upcoming American Film Market. WME Global is handling North American rights.

Kim Ashton serves as executive producer on the feature film.

Based on the play The Archbishop and The Antichrist by Michael Ashton, the feature film follows a fictionalized account of Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s (Whitaker) meetings with brutal murderer Piet Blomfield (Vaughn), who seeks redemption for the atrocities he’s committed while he serves a life sentence in prison in post-apartheid South Africa.

Forest Whitaker is currently filming Walt Disney Studios’ highly anticipated ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY, which will be released December 16, 2016, and will next appear in Paramount’s science fiction STORY OF YOUR LIFE alongside Amy Adams and Jeremy Renner.

Vince Vaughn is currently filming Mel Gibson’s HACKSAW RIDGE, co-starring Hugo Weaving and Andrew Garfield.

Writer/Director Roland Joffé started his directorial film career with THE KILLING FIELDS, which won Academy Awards for Best Supporting Actor, Cinematography, and Film Editing, and also earned Joffé a nomination for Best Director. His other credits include directing and producing THE SCARLET LETTER, starring Demi Moore and Gary Oldman, and directing historical adventure THE MISSION, starring Robert De Niro and Jeremy Irons, for which he was also nominated for an Oscar for Best Director.