John Wick Director to Produce Calexit, a Film About California Uprising
According to CinemaDrame news agency, Chad Stahelski, director of the John Wick films, is set to produce Calexit, a movie based on the graphic novel of the same name, whose storyline closely mirrors a California uprising.
Stahelski will produce the project alongside his 87Eleven Entertainment partners Alex Young and Jason Spitz, as well as Matteo Pizzolo, Brett Gurewitz, and Brian Giberson from Black Mask Studios. The producing studio for the film has not yet been announced.
Pizzolo, co-founder and president of Black Mask and one of the original creators of the graphic novel, is writing the screenplay adaptation. Set in a near future, the story imagines a scenario in which the U.S. president signs an executive order to deport all immigrants, but California declares itself a sanctuary state. A smuggler named Jamil and a young leader named Zora from the “Malholland Resistance” in “Occupied Los Angeles” — under martial law — fight to reclaim power from an authoritarian regime.
The original Calexit comic debuted in 2017 and went through seven printings. The series later expanded with several spin-offs and, today, resonates more than ever with current realities. The television rights were previously held by MRC but eventually reverted back to Pizzolo.
Black Mask has published over 100 innovative comic and graphic novel titles, including Black and Rogue State, the latter set in a world ruled by paramilitary forces.
Stahelski is also preparing to direct Amazon’s remake of Highlander, starring Henry Cavill.
