Simon West’s volcanic survival thriller, Skyfire, will get a theatrical and on-demand release this December in North America through Screen Media Films, as announced by Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment Inc. on Thursday.
The film released in the mainland last December to box office acclaim, billed as “China’s first large-scale disaster movie”, with a cast that lists Jason Isaacs (Hotel Mumbai), Hannah Quinlivan (Skyscraper), Xueqi Wang (Iron Man 3) and Shawn Dou (Wolf Totem).
In Skyfire, chaos erupts when the once dormant volcano at the world’s only volcano theme park and resort starts to rumble. A young scientist (Quinlivan) must convince the resort owner (Isaacs) to evacuate the island before it is too late.
West, best known as the blockbuster director behind Con Air, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, The Mechanic, and The Expendables 2, to name a few, directed from a script by Written by Will Wei Bu and Sidney King. Meridian Enterainment Chairwoman and Founder Jennifer Wenjie Dong produced the film, with Rhythm & Hues’s John Hughes who serving as VFX Producer – in association with six other post-production firms around thw world on the pic.
“Skyfire is an incredible return for Simon West to large-scale, blockbuster filmmaking. The immense scope of this thrilling story, and Simon’s skilled execution in telling it, results in a blast of a disaster movie that all can enjoy, whether they watch on the big screen or at home. With both dubbed and subtitled versions of the film, we’re excited for audiences to enjoy the ride,” said David Fannon, president of Screen Media.
Skyfire’s release follows on the heels of Screen Media’s acquisition of the Bella Throne thriller Girl, as well as Jesse Quinones’ MMA action drama, Cagefighter: Worlds Collide.
Prior releases include the Roger Michell-helmed Blackbird with Susan Sarandon, Kate Winslet and Mia Wasikowska, and Rod Lurie’s The Outpost (based on Jake Tapper’s New York Times Best Seller The Outpost: An Untold Story of American Valor). Screen Media’s sister company, Landmark Studio Group, is in post-production on Willy’s Wonderland with Nicolas Cage which is expected to be released by Screen Media early next year.