“Sicario” Producer Thunder Road Pictures Snags Mitchell LaFortune Spec “Burn Run” (Exclusive)
0UPDATE 06.06.16: After hitting the market shortly before Memorial Day and generating tons of heat, BURN RUN, written by former high-ranking intelligence officer Mitchell LaFortune has sold to Sicario producer Thunder Road Pictures.
Basil Iwanyk and Erica Lee will produce for Thunder Road, with Andrea Dimity executive producing. We’re hearing that Thunder Road was incredibly aggressive in getting this off the table, leading to a massive deal for screenwriter LaFortune’s debut.
The hot new action thriller is based on a true story, pitched as Sicario meets Bourne, and centers around a grieving CIA operative and his translator who, after an intelligence leak dangerously exposes a covert mission in Afghanistan, must find their way out of the desert, outgunned and hunted by elite special forces.
The spec saw tons of interest from industry heavyweights, including Training Day director Antoine Fuqua, who came on board to produce with producers Andrew Rona and Alex Heineman of The Picture Company. (We’re hearing that Fuqua, Rona, and Heineman are not involved in the deal with Thunder Road.)
The spec saw its way into the hands of Peter Chernin, Lorenzo Di Bonaventura, and Barry Josephson, as well as Safehouse and Voltage before ultimately peaking the interest of Lee, who brought the project into Thunder Road. Now producers will look to land one of the many A-list directors who have taken serious interest in the project since it hit the market.
Paradigm’s Adrian Garcia and David Boxerbaum led the charge on this one.