Paul Schrader’s ‘Oh, Canada’ Secures French Release

French distributor ARP has picked up all French rights Paul Schrader‘s new film Oh, Canada ahead of its world premiere in competition in Cannes next month.

The feature stars Richard Gere, Uma Thurman, Michael Imperioli and Jacob Elordi.

Oh, Canada reunites Schrader with Gere, more than 40 years after their first collaboration on American Gigolo. Adapted from the Russell Banks novel Foregone, Oh, Canada sees Gere playing Leonard Fife, a famed American documentary filmmaker who fled to Canada as a young man to avoid the Vietnam War draft. Dying from cancer, he agrees to give a final interview where he promises to reveals his long-held secrets, speaking in front of his wife (Thurman), a devoted former student (Imperioli), and the film crew.

David Gonzales is the lead producer on Oh, Canada alongside Tiffany Boyle, Luisa Law, Scott LaStaiti and Meghan Hanlon. Arclight Films is handling international sales and WME Independent is co-repping domestic rights for the film with Gonzales.

“We’ve been longtime admirers of Paul Schrader’s work and devout readers of Russell Banks’ books. Oh, Canada is the reunion of two masters,” said ARP’s Michèle Halberstadt. “And also [it’s a] reunion between Paul Schrader and Richard Gere, so we felt this was an irresistible proposition.”

Schrader, who started as a screenwriter for Martin Scorsese, penning the scripts for Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, The Last Temptation of Christ and Bringing out the Dead, is among America’s most acclaimed and prolific independent directors, with a long list of credits running from American Gigolo, Cat People and Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters to his late career creative run of 2017’s First Reformed, The Card Counter in 2021, and 2022’s The Master Gardener.

Arclight Films’ Gary Hamilton, Ying Ye, Ryan Hamilton and Brian Beckmann are executive producers alongside Terri Garbarini, Tom Ogden, Andrea Bucko, Kyle Stroud, Elsa Ramo, Oliver Ridge, Andrea Chung, Kathryn M. Moseley, Eyal Rimmon and Damiano Tucci.

The French deal was negotiated between ARP and Gonzales.