SF Studios sets production start for new Tom Hanks comedy
January 31, 2022
Tom Hanks (Finch, Greyhound, Captain Philips) and director Marc Forster (Quantum of Solace, World War Z, Finding Neverland) are set to begin shooting on SF Studios’ life-affirming comedy A Man Called Otto, adapted from Fredrik Backman’s 1# New York Times bestseller “A Man Called Ove” and the film of the same name, written and directed by Hannes Holm – with the titular character being renamed to reflect the shift to an American setting. The cast also includes Mariana Treviño, Rachel Keller and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo. Principal photography will commence in mid-February, 2022 on location in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Forster will direct from a script written by two-time Oscar nominee David Magee (Finding Neverland, Life of Pi, Mary Poppins Returns), who will also executive produce. A Man Called Otto sees the pair reuniting for the first time following their successful collaboration on the acclaimed Finding Neverland. Fredrik Wikström Nicastro (A Man Called Ove, Borg vs McEnroe) of SF Studios is producing the film with Rita Wilson (Mamma Mia!, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, My Big Fat Greek Wedding, My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2), and Playtone partners Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman. Marc Forster and Renée Wolfe will serve as Executive Producers via their production company 2DUX2 (WWZ, Christopher Robin). SF Studios is also fully financing the project.
STXinternational is handling international sales at the upcoming European Film Market. CAA Media Finance is representing US rights alongside Lichter Grossman Nichols Adler Feldman & Clark.
A Man Called Otto is a charming and heartwarming reflection on loss and love, based on the #1 New York Times bestselling novel “A Man Called Ove” which spent 77 consecutive weeks on the bestsellers’ list and sold over 7 million copies worldwide. SF Studios then successfully adapted the book into a Swedish film, written and directed by Hannes Holm, which was the highest-grossing foreign-language film in the U.S. in 2016, and went on to be nominated for two Academy Awards and won Best Comedy at the European Film Awards.
Otto (Tom Hanks) is a grumpy isolated widower with staunch principles, strict routines and a short fuse, who gives everyone in his neighborhood a hard time as he watches over it like a hawk. Just as it seems like he’s finally given up on life, an unlikely and reluctant friendship develops with his new neighbors. Little by little, Otto undergoes a subtle transformation…but is he really capable of change?