Fresh off “The Smashing Machine,” Dwayne Johnson and Benny Safdie’s next project “Lizard Music” has been picked up by Scott Stuber and Amazon MGM’s United Artists in a competitive situation.
Safdie will also write the script based on the Daniel Pinkwater book of the same name, which follows a boy left to his own devices who stumbles upon a secret late-night broadcast of lizards playing otherworldly music and a hidden door to the extraordinary swings open. His search for answers leads him to the eccentric and whimsical septuagenarian Chicken Man, and his beloved companion, a 111-year-old chicken named Claudia – two kindred spirits who found each other at just the right time. United by this shared vision, they set off on an adventure that begins as a hunt for a hidden society but blossoms into something far greater: a voyage through invisible worlds, unexpected harmonies and the unbreakable bond between lost souls who discover magic not only in what they find, but in each other.
Safdie directed Johnson in A24’s MMA drama “The Smashing Machine,” which is now playing in theaters and drew positive notices for Johnson’s dramatic performance.
Producers on “Lizard Music” include Stuber and Nick Nesbitt for UA, Safdie for Out for the Count Productions, Johnson for Seven Bucks Productions and Magnetic Fields Entertainment’s David Koplan.
“We are so thrilled to partner once again with the extraordinarily talented Dwayne Johnson, as well as work for the first time with the amazing creator, writer and director Benny Safdie, on ‘Lizard Music,’” Courtenay Valenti, head of film, streaming and theatrical for Amazon MGM Studios, said. “Everyone at Amazon MGM and UA is deeply inspired by their previous collaboration on the critically acclaimed ‘The Smashing Machine.’ We are so excited to now collaborate with them on this imaginative, entertaining and cinematic story; ‘Lizard Music’ is a tale that feels both timeless and unique. We are very fortunate that they have trusted us to be their studio partners.”
Stuber added: “I’ve been lucky enough to work with Dwayne and Benny on multiple projects and have seen firsthand their incredible talents and connection as artists. The world they’ve created together for ‘Lizard Music’ is unlike anything either has done before, and we couldn’t be more excited to bring this wonderfully imaginative story to life.”
“I couldn’t be more excited to go on this journey with Amazon MGM studios and United Artists,” Safdie said. “‘Lizard Music’ is a book I read to my two sons and we were riveted by its imagination and wonder. I love Daniel Pinkwater as a person and an author; the idea of making a movie where everyone can join the conversation is both thrilling and beautiful. To go on this adventure with Dwayne and to be able to watch him transform and become the Chicken Man is just beyond … I can’t wait!”
