Focus Features Picks Up Sundance Film ‘Honk For Jesus. Save Your Soul’
Focus Features, Peacock, and Monkeypaw Productions announced today the acquisition of all worldwide rights to the hit comedy HONK FOR JESUS. SAVE YOUR SOUL., which was a breakout hit at the 2022 Sundance film festival and will premiere in theaters and on Peacock later this year. Filmmaking sibling duo the Ebo twins, writer-director Adamma Ebo and producer Adanne Ebo, make their feature film debut with production company Pinky Promise in this adaptation of their previous short film of the same name. This comedic satire features stellar performances from Regina Hall (Support the Girls, Girls Trip) and Sterling K. Brown (“This Is Us”, “American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson”).
“Adamma and Adanne’s fresh, unique voices deliver such an authentic, hilarious and searing experience. Their vision coupled with the talents of Regina and Sterling deserved all the acclaim Sundance audiences gave it,” said Focus Features chairman Peter Kujawski. “I am so thrilled that we get to bring the film to worldwide audiences with Peacock and Monkeypaw.”
HONK FOR JESUS. SAVE YOUR SOUL. is produced by Academy Award® winner Daniel Kaluuya through his production company 59% with Rowan Riley and Amandla Crichlow, alongside Adamma Ebo, Adanne Ebo, Kara Durrett, Pinky Promise’s Jessamine Burgum and Matthew Cooper, and Regina Hall and Sterling K. Brown.
“We are excited to partner with Focus Features and Monkeypaw to bring HONK FOR JESUS. SAVE YOUR SOUL. to Peacock customers day-and-date with its theatrical release,” said Val Boreland, Executive Vice President, Content Acquisition, NBCUniversal Entertainment, Television and Streaming. “We continue to expand the Peacock catalog with fresh stories from new creators like the Ebo twins, whose feature film debut already has Sundance audiences buzzing and is certain to delight viewers everywhere with its magnetic mix of satirical humor and drama.”
Monkeypaw’s president Win Rosenfeld said, “Central to Monkeypaw’s mission is working with emerging filmmakers who are telling fresh and disruptive stories in mischievous new ways. We are so fortunate that the brilliant Adamma and Adanne Ebo have chosen to partner with us on the release of their hilarious HONK FOR JESUS, SAVE YOUR SOUL. They’re master satirists and have found both humor and heart in this fierce and provocative critique of hypocrisy.”
In HONK FOR JESUS. SAVE YOUR SOUL., proud first lady of a Southern Baptist megachurch, Trinitie Childs (Regina Hall) carries immense responsibility on her shoulders. After a scandal involving her husband, Pastor Lee-Curtis Childs (Sterling K. Brown), the church is forced to close temporarily, leaving Trinitie struggling to manage the aftermath. Now Trinitie and Lee-Curtis must rebuild their congregation and reconcile their faith by all means necessary to make the biggest comeback that commodified religion has ever seen.
Writer/Director Adamma Ebo and Producer Adanne Ebo state, “We're so unbelievably blessed and hyped to be partners with Focus and Monkeypaw on our first feature film. Their commitment to our vision as filmmakers and bolstering the film as a whole is amazing and we cannot wait to bring it to the world with this team.”
Pinky Promise founder and CEO, Jessamine Burgum also expressed, “I am thrilled to collaborate alongside Adamma and Adanne Ebo and see that their creative vision has been realized. Focus Features and Monkeypaw Productions have an eye for incredible storytelling and for them to appreciate the nuances of HONK FOR JESUS, truly makes for the best partnership I could have ever imagined. Regina Hall and Sterling K. Brown delivered unforgettable performances that I can’t wait for audiences to witness; I’m giddy just thinking about it!”