Billy Magnussen (Road House, Lilo & Stitch), Ella Purnell (“Fallout” “Yellowjackets”), and Ariana Greenblatt (Barbie, Now You See Me: Now You Don’t) are set to star in the riotous comedy Hot Ted, directed by SNL alumni Hannah Levy in their feature directorial debut. The announcement came today from Protagonist Pictures’ CEO, Dave Bishop.
Protagonist Pictures is launching worldwide sales at the upcoming Cannes Film Market.
Hot Ted is produced by Magnussen, Shane Andries, and Anne Hollister for HappyBad Bungalow (Coup!) and Javier Chapa and Phillip Braun for Mucho Mas (Rosario, The Long Game) and Purnell (“Sweetpea”). Morgan Cano-Long and Robert Muñoz will executive produce for Mucho Mas. Protagonist’s Bishop, James Pugh and George Hamilton serve as executive producers. The script is penned by Grace McLeod.
When 16-year-old true-crime podcast enthusiast Zoe’s (Greenblatt) parents send her to Camp Shady Pines for the summer against her will, she’s the immediate black sheep of the Beaver Cabin. The summer takes a turn when their bunk counselor Liz doesn’t arrive for breakfast one morning, and Zoe’s counselor crush Amy (Purnell) tells everyone Liz had to leave for a “family emergency.” But Zoe doesn’t buy it – and is convinced that hunky counselor Ted (Magnussen) is behind Liz’s disappearance. Ted’s got all the hallmarks of a classic serial killer: he’s not on social media, he owns a van, and he’s a little too nice to everyone. But is Ted a murderer, or is he just hot as hell? It’s up to Zoe and the Beavers to investigate the truth: is Hot Ted really a serial killer or is he just, like… the perfect guy?
“It doesn’t get fresher than this—sharp, hilarious, and a wildly original spin on the genre,” said Bishop. “Hot Ted nails that chaotic, cringey moment when childhood fades and adulthood crashes in. With a killer cast led by Billy, Ariana, and Ella, this one’s got ‘instant classic’ written all over it.”
“HappyBad Bungalow is all about uplifting original, inspiring artists. We couldn’t be more fired up to back the razor-sharp voices of Grace McLeod and Hannah Levy in this refreshing project!” said Magnussen.
“Hot Ted is a psychosexual thriller as imagined by virgins. Mean Girls meets American Psycho,” said director Hannah Levy. “This is the movie I’ve been dreaming to make– a reinvention of the camp comedy that speaks to being a teenager right now and always.”
A seasoned director of the multi-award winning live sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live, Hannah Levy began their career at The Onion and Funny or Die, the production studio founded by Will Ferrell and Adam McKay. Levy has also directed episodes of the Emmy Award-winning series “John Mulaney Presents: Everybody’s in LA,” and written for the hit Comedy Central series “Alternatino,” and Netflix’s “Murderville.” At SNL, they worked on iconic digital shorts, directing hosts including Billie Eilish, Daniel Craig, and Kim Kardashian in viral sketches.
Billy Magnussen most recently starred in HBO’s superhero movie satire series “The Franchise” from Sam Mendes and Armando Iannucci, and acclaimed director Doug Liman’s reimagining of the 80s cult classic, Road House. He will next be seen in Disney’s highly anticipated live-action family adventure, Lilo & Stitch, AMC’s Silicon Valley drama “The Audacity” from Jonathan Glatzer (“Succession,” “Better Call Saul”), and opposite Margot Robbie in Kogonada’s Sony feature, A Big Bold Beautiful Journey.
Ella Purnell currently stars as Lucy McLean in Amazon’s Emmy-winning sci-fi series “Fallout.” Most recently she executive produced and starred in Sky Atlantic’s dark comedy series “Sweetpea,” and in Paramount+’s 10-time Emmy-nominated drama “Yellowjackets.” Additional credits include Netflix’s “Arcane,” Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead alongside Dave Bautista, and Tim Burton’s Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. Next up for Purnell is the horror-comedy The Scurry, from director Craig Roberts and set to release in 2025.
Ariana Greenblatt is a rising star, who began her acting career at a young age starring on popular Disney Channel sitcom “Stuck in the Middle.” Greenblatt’s breakout year came in 2023 with notable roles in Greta Gerwig’s Academy Award-nominated blockbuster Barbie, the sci-fi thriller 65, starring opposite Adam Driver, and as young Ahsoka Tano in the LucasFilm/Disney+ series “Ahsoka.” Most recently she starred in the film adaptation of Borderlands, alongside Cate Blanchett and Kevin Hart. Up next, Greenblatt will star in Now You See Me: Now You Don’t co-starring Jesse Eisenberg, Rosamund Pike and Morgan Freeman. Early film credits include A Bad Moms Christmas and Avengers: Infinity War.
Grace McLeod is a queer playwright and screenwriter from New York City whose work uses irreverent humor to tackle social truths. Her queer coming-of-age play HERLAND received a National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere in 2019, with productions in Chicago, San Diego, and Los Angeles. As a playwright, Grace has worked with The Playwrights Realm, No Guarantees Productions, Goodman Theatre, Ashland New Plays Festival, IAMA Theatre Company, and many more.
Magnussen is repped by UTA, Anonymous Content, and Sloane, Offer, Weber & Dern; Purnell is repped by Curtis Brown Group, WME Entertainment, Range Media Partners, Shelter PR, and Sloane, Offer, Weber, & Dern; Greenblatt is repped by Paradigm Talent Agency, Mosaic, imPRint and Jackoway Austen Tyerman Wertheimer Mandelbaum Morris Bernstein Trattner Auerbach Hynick Jaime LeVine Sample & Klein; Levy is repped by Artists First and Ziffren Brittenham; McLeod is repped by Artists First and Gersh.
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ABOUT HAPPYBAD BUNGALOW
HappyBad Bungalow is an artist-led production company specializing in bold, character-driven stories across film and television. Recent films include Coup! and Violent Ends. The company is represented by Lastine Entertainment Law.
ABOUT MUCHO MAS MEDIA
Mucho Mas is the producer behind movies like Netflix’s Blue Miracle, true story sports drama and SXSW 2023 Audience Award-winner The Long Game, and the newly released horror film, Rosario. Mucho Mas is developing the La Bamba remake at Sony with Oscar-nominated screenwriter José Rivera (Motorcycle Diaries), and the Texas Monthly-based Myrtis, the incredible true story of bull riding trailblazer Myrtis Dightman.
ABOUT PROTAGONIST PICTURES
Led by Dave Bishop alongside George Hamilton and James Pugh, Protagonist Pictures is the sales, finance, and production company with a proven track record in outstanding films and commercial successes. Based in the UK, the company handles films from around the world, always maintaining a strong focus on filmmakers with exceptional vision and storytelling skills. Protagonist Pictures has championed groundbreaking filmmakers since its inception, including Chloe Zhao, Yorgos Lanthimos, Sean Baker, Rose Glass, Taiki Waititi and Pawel Pawlikowski.
Protagonist handled international sales on Brady Corbet’s The Brutalist, starring Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones and Guy Pearce, which premiered in Venice to stellar reviews and garnered 3 Academy Awards, and 3 Golden Globes including Best Motion Picture Drama, Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama, and Best Director.
The company also handled sales and executive produced Nora Fingscheidt’s The Outrun, starring 4x Academy Award nominee Saoirse Ronan, which premiered in Sundance and Berlin to critical acclaim, and was recently nominated for 2 BAFTA award including Outstanding British Film and Leading Actress.
Protagonist Pictures ’current slate also features the psychological horror The Night House, adapted from Jo Nesbø’s best-selling horror novel, directed by Jesper Ganslandt and starring Jacob Tremblay and Aaron Paul; Mark Jenkin’s mystery drama Rose of Nevada, starring George MacKay and Callum Turner; the survival thriller Die By Night, directed by Rod Blackhurst and starring Isabelle Fuhrman, Ben Hardy and Scoot McNairy; Sophie Hyde’s multi-generational LGBTQ+ family feature, Jimpa starring Olivia Colman, John Lithgow and newcomer Aud Mason Hyde; the neo-noir thriller Islands, directed by Jan-Ole Gerster in his English language debut, and starring Sam Riley and Stacy Martin;
Monitor, the high-concept horror directed by Ryan Polly and Matt Black and produced by Temple Hill, the team behind the megahit Smile Franchise; Brian Cox’s heartwarming Scottish comedy Glenrothan, starring Cox in his directorial debut, alongside Alan Cumming; Adam Scott’s edge of your seat thriller Double Booked, featuring Scott, Zazie Beetz, Sterling K. Brown and Alexandra Daddario; the charming NY-set comedy Encore, produced by Temple Hill and directed by Simon Curtis, starring Glenn Close, Jeremy Irons, Henry Winkler and Don Johnson, scheduled to go into production in spring 2025. Protagonist also handled international sales on Eli Craig’s highly anticipated horror adaptation Clown in a Cornfield, also from the producers of Smile and set for a wide theatrical release by RLJE Films and Shudder in May 2025. Additional titles include Thordur Palsson’s elevated horror The Damned, starring Odessa Young and Joe Cole, and premiering at the 2024 Tribeca Film Festival, both of which Protagonist also executive produced. The ensemble comedy Rumours, directed by Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson and Galen Johnson, led by Cate Blanchett and Alicia Vikander, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and Sister Midnight, starring Radhika Apte, Ashok Pathak and Chhaya Kadam, and directed by Karan Kandhari, which also premiered in Cannes at the Director’s Fortnight.
PR via Maxine Leonard PR