Mumbai, July, 2013: Oscar winning actress Helen Mirren and rising star Manish Dayal have been cast in the DreamWorks Studios drama, “The Hundred-Foot Journey,” it was announced today by Holly Bario, President of Production for the studio. Based on the best-selling book by Richard Morais, Steve Knight wrote the script. Lasse Hallstrom will direct the film with Steven Spielberg, Oprah Winfrey and Juliet Blake producing.
In “The Hundred-Foot Journey,” when an Indian family moves to Southern France and opens an Indian restaurant a hundred feet across the street from a Michelin starred French restaurant, a culinary battle ensues between the two that ultimately tests the power of family, loyalty and love.
Production will begin on the film in September in France and India and will be released in U.S. theaters on August 8, 2014. The Walt Disney Company is distributing the film in the United States and in select international territories, while Mister Smith Entertainment is handling distribution in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. DreamWorks’ partner Reliance will distribute the film in India.
Helen Mirren is a four-time Academy Award nominee and won an Oscar for her portrayal as Queen Elizabeth II in “The Queen.” Her other film credits include “The Madness of King George,” “Gosford Park,” “The Last Station,” “Red” and “Hitchcock.” Mirren also starred in the popular drama series “Prime Suspect” for which she received two Emmy Awards. She also won an Emmy for her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth I in the miniseries “Elizabeth I.” She is represented by Creative Artists Agency.
From South Carolina, Manish Dayal has appeared in projects for Film, TV, and Theater. He portrayed Raj Kher in The CW series, “90210.” Some of his TV credits include: “The Good Wife” (CBS), “Law & Order: Criminal Intent” (10th series finale on USA), “Rubicon” (AMC), and “Outsourced” (NBC). Dayal also played the lead in The New Group’s twice-extended off-Broadway comedy hit, “Rafta Rafta” by Ayub Khan Din. Most recently, Dayal co-starred in the ABC Family series, “Switched At Birth.” He is represented by Innovative Artists, Industry Entertainment and Bloom Hergott Diemer Rosenthal Laviolette Feldman Schenkman & Goodman.
About Reliance Entertainment:
Reliance Entertainment (www.relianceentertainment.net) is the flagship motion picture arm of India’s Reliance Group with a significant presence in filmed entertainment (film production, distribution, and exhibition). Reliance Group also has key interests in broadcasting and new media ventures.
Reliance Entertainment has built an impressive film production slate in Hindi, English & other Indian languages, which it markets and distributes worldwide. Following its association with IM Global, the company now benefits from an international sales team with an excellent reputation and global presence dedicated to selling its Bollywood and regional language slate.
In Hollywood, Reliance Entertainment has partnered with Steven Spielberg and Stacey Snider on the formation of DreamWorks Studios and has development deals with Nicolas Cage’s Saturn Films, Jim Carrey’s JC 23 Entertainment, George Clooney’s Smokehouse Productions, Chris Columbus’ 1492 Pictures, Tom Hanks’ Playtone Productions, Brad Pitt’s Plan B Entertainment, Jay Roach’s Everyman Pictures, Brett Ratner¿s Rat Entertainment, Julia Roberts’ Red Om Films and Brian Gazer and Ron Howards’ Imagine Entertainment.
Group company, Reliance MediaWorks Limited is India’s fastest growing film and entertainment services company. It operates BIG Cinemas, India’s largest cinema chain with over 550 screens spread across India, USA, Malaysia, Nepal and Netherlands. Reliance MediaWorks currently has a dominant and comprehensive presence in Film Services: Motion Picture Processing and DI; Film Restoration and Image Enhancement; 3D; Digital Mastering: Studios and Equipment rentals; Visual Effects; Animation; TVC Post Production with presence across India, USA, UK, Russia and Japan. It’s television venture, BIG Synergy, is among the top players in the television programming industry.
The Reliance Group (www.relianceadagroup.com) is amongst India’s top 3 business houses and has interests in telecommunications, energy, financial services, infrastructure and media and entertainment.
About DreamWorks Studios
DreamWorks Studios is a motion picture company formed in 2009 and led by Steven Spielberg and Stacey Snider in partnership with The Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group. The company’s recent releases include Spielberg’s “Lincoln,” starring Daniel Day-Lewis, Sally Field and Tommy Lee Jones. The film has grossed over $270 million at the worldwide box office and was nominated for twelve Academy Awards® with Daniel Day-Lewis winning for Best Actor. Other releases include “Real Steel,” starring Hugh Jackman and directed by Shawn Levy, Steven Spielberg’s “War Horse,” based on Michael Morpurgo’s award-winning book and nominated for six Academy Awards® including Best Picture, and “The Help,” which resonated with audiences around the country and earned over $200 million at the box office and received four Academy Award® nominations with Octavia Spencer winning for Best Supporting Actress. Upcoming films include the comedy “Delivery Man,” starring Vince Vaughn, the WikiLeaks drama “The Fifth Estate,” and car racing actioner “Need for Speed.”
DreamWorks Studios can be found on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/DreamWorksStudios and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/dw_studios.