Alec Griffen Roth has found his leading stars for his upcoming indie feature, Billy Knight - and he’s boasting a killer lineup. Today it was revealed that Al Pacino, Charlie Heaton, and Diana Silvers will lead the film in what will be Roth’s feature debut as both a writer and director.
The film will follow Alex (Heaton) and Emily (Silvers), two grad school students who are chasing down their dreams of becoming filmmakers. For Alex, the entertainment bug runs in the family as his late father was a failed screenwriter who gave much of his time to the craft but ultimately never saw any of his productions brought to life. Hoping to leave some of his legacy behind, Alex’s father left his son a slew of unfinished scripts and a handkerchief with the name “Billy Knight” embroidered on it. With the handkerchief in hand, Alex sets out on a glitz-filled adventure through Hollywood as he seeks to find out who Billy Knight is and better understand the significance of his father’s heirloom.
Pacino was last seen in Ridley Scott’s House of Gucci, and was recently announced to be co-producing the Johnny Depp helmed biopic Modigliani. Heaton just came off the uber-successful fourth season run of Stranger Things which locked in record-breaking numbers from viewers across Netflix. Known for her roles in features such as Booksmart and Ma, Silvers was recently cast in the Laura Dern and Liam Hemsworth-led romantic film, Lonely Planet, which will find a home on Netflix.
In a statement released alongside the casting announcement, Roth said that his latest project is “a love letter to cinema, a fantasy steeped in the history of this great art form.” He also gave insight to the feature’s coming-of-age themes saying that not only is it “the tale of two struggling artists,” but that it’s also “an introspective struggle of a young man trying to find his voice, and discovering what’s important in life.” Finally, the director praised the talents of his trio of leading cast members, commenting that working with them was going to be “a dream come true.”
Autumn Bailey-Ford and Cameron Burnett of Prominent Productions will produce alongside Sevier Crespo and Amanda Kiely. Sarah Sarandos, Josh Clayton, Kirk Martin, and Peter Bortel will fill out the executive production team.
As of right now, Billy Knight doesn’t have a release window, but cameras are set to begin rolling this week. Stay tuned to Collider for more information as it becomes available.