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President Joe Biden’s pardon for Hunter, his sole surviving son, was a symphony missing a crucial note: “I changed my mind.”

The pardon was a moment of paternal grace that took me aback — not because of the act itself but rather what was left unsaid. Presidential history boasts far more contentious pardons: George H. W. Bush pardoned former Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger and five others for secretly selling arms to Iran during an embargo. Bill Clinton pardoned disgraced financier Marc Rich. Donald Trump pardoned political allies who might...

Jennifer Kent.

Jennifer Kent’s dance card is filling up after The Nightingale: Amazon Studios is angling to distribute her next film worldwide and the filmmaker is set to write and direct an episode of a horror anthology for Netflix and the pilot for a Us sci-fi series.

Kent aims to start shooting Alice + Freda Forever, a feature based on the true story of two teenagers who fell in love in conservative 1890s Memphis, in mid-2020.

Producers Greg Berlanti, Sidney Kimmel, Sarah Schechter and John Penotti are finalising a deal for Amazon to finance and distribute the film, according to Deadline.

The writer-director has been attached to the project since Sidney Kimmel Entertainment bought the rights to Alexis Coe’s novel in 2015.

Coe drew on research from more than 100 love letters, maps, artifacts, historical documents, newspaper articles and courtroom proceedings to tell the story of Alice Mitchell and Freda Ward.

by Jason Adams

I don't know how you guys all felt about The Nightingale -- that is if you've gotten the chance to see The Nightingale -- but Jennifer Kent's divisive second film has been, for me, a 2019 favorite. Add it up with The Babadook and I'm ready to follow Kent anywhere now, and it looks like we know where she's taking us next -- to 1890s Tennessee to be precise. 

She'll be adapting Alice + Freda Forever, Alexis Coe's 2014 true-crime retelling of a story that captivated / horrified the unprepared nation, involving two teenage girls who fell in love and whose sapphic obsession quick turned to violence and most unsavory murder...

Following the success of “The Babadook” and “The Nightingale,” Australian filmmaker Jennifer Kent is close to locking a deal with Amazon Studios to finance her next project, the true crime thriller “Alice + Freda Forever.” (Via Deadline). Based on the book by Alexis Coe, the thriller tells the true-life story of two teenage girls whose intense romance turns into an unstable and violent obsession. Dubbed “A Very Unnatural Crime” at the time by the sensationalist press, the 1892 Memphis, Tennessee case captivated the American public and was largely responsible for launching the murderous lesbian trope in literature that persists in pop culture today.

Kent is set to write the adaptation as well as direct. Greg Berlanti, Sidney Kimmel, Sarah Schechter and John Penotti are producing, with a summer 2020 production planned. Negotiations are ongoing for Amazon Studios to finance the project and gain world distribution rights.

Berlanti is a powerhouse out gay producer,...

Amazon Studios has snapped up global rights to the big screen adaptation of “Alice + Freda Forever,” Variety has confirmed.

The deal for the film comes as the Toronto International Film Festival kicks off and could signal that the streaming service will be an active buyer. That should be welcome news for agencies, who are looking for some deep-pocketed content companies as they hustle to kick off some bidding wars.

The big attraction here is Jennifer Kent, the Australian filmmaker who scored a low-budget horror hit with “The Babadook.” She followed that up with “The Nightingale,” a revenge thriller that earned a largely positive reception from critics. Kent will write and direct the film, which is adapted from Alexis Coe’s book.

The film is based on the true story of Alice Mitchell, who inspired a media frenzy after she murdered her lover, Freda Ward. Here’s the official logline: “In 1890’s Memphis,...

Exclusive: Amazon Studios is negotiating to finance and distribute the next film by Jennifer Kent, the Australian filmmaker who followed the sleeper horror hit The Babadook with the shocking period revenge tale The Nightingale, which was part of last year’s Toronto Film Festival. Kent will write and direct an adaptation of Alice + Freda Forever, based on the book by Alexis Coe.

Greg Berlanti, Sidney Kimmel, Sarah Schechter and John Penotti are producing. A summer 2020 production start is planned.

The studio is in advanced negotiations to finance and gain worldwide distribution rights. Kent changes locales from The Nightingale‘s 1825 Tasmania to 1890s Memphis, Tennessee.

Two teenage girls, Alice Mitchell and Freda Ward, fell deeply in love, until jealousy and outside forces turn their romance into an unstable obsession. The result was a crime story that captivated the U.S. for a time.

Kent is repped by Wme, Exile Entertainment and Sloane Offer Weber Dern.

Producers of the next movie for Australian director Jennifer Kent (The Babadook) are in talks to have the screen adaptation of a Gilded Age-era murder financed by Amazon Studios, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed.

Amazon Studios is set to produce the indie with Sidney Kimmel Entertainment and Berlanti Productions. The project, for which Amazon is also negotiating the worldwide rights, is a book-to-movie adaptation of Alice + Freda Forever: A Murder in Memphis, by Alexis Coe.

Coe's book portrays two teenage girls who fall deeply in love, until jealousy and outside forces turn their romance into an unstable obsession.

Greg ...

Producers of the next movie for Australian director Jennifer Kent (The Babadook) are in talks to have the screen adaptation of a Gilded Age-era murder financed by Amazon Studios, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed.

Amazon Studios is set to produce the indie with Sidney Kimmel Entertainment and Berlanti Productions. The project, for which Amazon is also negotiating the worldwide rights, is a book-to-movie adaptation of Alice + Freda Forever: A Murder in Memphis, by Alexis Coe.

Coe's book portrays two teenage girls who fall deeply in love, until jealousy and outside forces turn their romance into an unstable obsession.

Greg ...

She made an impressive debut with chilling horror The Babadook and now Jennifer Kent has set up her next project. The writer/director is on board to adapt Alexis Coe’s non-fiction book Alice + Freda Forever.Coe researched the real-life tragic love story of Alice Mitchell and Freda Ward, who developed a deep romantic relationship in Memphis, Tennessee in 1892. But when their love letters were discovered, there were forbidden from ever speaking again. While Ward apparently adjusted to the situation, Mitchell’s broken heart drove her to jealous, murderous rage, which then sparked one of the most sensational court cases of its time.Kent’s first film showed a deft touch with emotional material and a grasp on writing great, nuanced roles for women, so this feels like something she could use to make a great film. Executive producer Carla Hacken, who is on board to shepherd the film alongside...