Principal photography has begun in Northern Ireland on Pixie, a comedic thriller to be directed by Barnaby Thompson (St. Trinian’s 1&2), it was announced today.
The film stars Olivia Cooke (Ready Player One, Thoroughbreds, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl) in the lead role alongside Ben Hardy (Bohemian Rhapsody, X-Men Apocalypse) and Daryl McCormack (A Very English Scandal, Peaky Blinders) with Colm Meaney (Layer Cake, Halal Daddy), Dylan Moran (Black Books, Shaun of the Dead, Run Fat Boy Run) and Oscar-nominated and Emmy-winning actor Alec Baldwin (SNL, Mission: Impossible – Fallout, Still Alice).
Thompson is producing the film with James Clayton (My Generation, Pride). Peter Touche and Samantha Allwinton from Ingenious Media will serve as executive producers.
Thompson will direct from an original script by Preston Thompson (Kids in Love). John De Borman (Full Monty, An Education) is the director of photography and David Holmes (Ocean’s Eleven, Killing Eve) is the composer.
Funded by Ingenious and Fragile Films, with support from Northern Ireland Screen, Pixie will shoot in and around Belfast, Northern Ireland for seven weeks, with additional photography in the West of Ireland.
Pixie (Cooke) wants to avenge her mother’s death by masterminding a heist, but her plans go awry and she finds herself on the run with two young men (Hardy, McCormack) who are way out of their depth being chased across the Wild Irish countryside by gangsters. She has to pit her wits against everyone, taking on the patriarchy to claim the right to shape her own life.
I am excited to be returning to the Emerald Isle, the birthplace of my father and where I started my career directing documentaries, to make a comedic thriller with a wonderful cast against an extraordinary landscape. I’m also thrilled the film is going to be distributed in the UK and Ireland by Paramount, where I started my career producing movies.
Barnaby Thompson
Endeavor Content is handling worldwide sales. Paramount Pictures has acquired distribution rights in the UK and Ireland.
Barnaby Thompson started his career directing documentaries including the award-winning Kiss the Sky about Jimi Hendrix. He worked with legendary producer Lorne Michaels producing Wayne’s World 1&2, Coneheads and Tommy Boy. He returned to the UK where he set up Fragile Films and has produced and/or directed some of the most successful British independent films including SpiceWorld, Kevin and Perry Go Large, and Dorian Gray. Most recently he was the executive producer of the UK hit,