HBO To Air Original Film THE SURVIVOR Starring Ben Foster On April 27
The HBO Original film THE SURVIVOR marks award-winning filmmaker Barry Levinson’s return to HBO. Based on the incredible true story of Harry Haft, the film reunites Levinson with award-winning actor Ben Foster. Foster stars in the title role as Haft who, after being sent to Auschwitz, survives not only the unspeakable horrors of the camp, but the gladiatorial boxing spectacle he is forced to perform with his fellow prisoners for the amusement of his captors. Unbeknownst to those who try to destroy him, Haft’s will to survive is driven by his quest to reunite with the woman he loves.
An examination of one man’s journey from unspeakable horrors to freedom, forgiveness and redemption, THE SURVIVOR debuts WEDNESDAY, APRIL 27 at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT, in honor of Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day), on HBO and will be available to stream on HBO Max.
Based on the book “Harry Haft: Survivor of Auschwitz, Challenger of Rocky Marciano” by Alan Haft, the film was directed by Academy Award®-winner Barry Levinson, whose previous HBO Films (“Paterno,” “The Wizard of Lies” and “You Don’t Know Jack”) have amassed a combined 21 Emmy® nominations; with a script by Justine Juel Gillmer (“The 100”).
THE SURVIVOR reunites Ben Foster (“Leave No Trace,” “Hell or High Water”) with director Levinson, who cast him in his first film, “Liberty Heights.”
The film also stars Vicky Krieps (“Phantom Thread”), Billy Magnussen (“No Time to Die”), Peter Sarsgaard (“Jackie”), Saro Emirze (“Wilsberg”), Dar Zuzovsky (“Hostages”), Danny DeVito (“It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia”), and John Leguizamo (“Latin History for Morons”).
THE SURVIVOR is produced by New Mandate Films’ Matti Leshem (“The Shallows”), BRON Studios’ Aaron L. Gilbert (“Bombshell,” “Monster,” “The Front Runner”), Baltimore Pictures’ Jason Sosnoff (HBO’s “Paterno” and “The Wizard of Lies”) and Barry Levinson (“Donnie Brasco,” “Bugsy”) and Scott Pardo (“Hope & A Little Sugar”). Executive Producers are Joel Greenberg, Ben Foster, Danny Devito, Brenda Gilbert, Steven Thibault, Ashley Levinson, Anjay Nagpal, Ron McLeod, Jason Cloth and Richard McConnell. The film is from New Mandate Films and BRON Studios, in association with Baltimore Pictures, Endeavor Content, USC Shoah Foundation and Creative Wealth Media.
The film’s production was aided by a team at USC Shoah Foundation who provided detailed historical consulting in addition to access to a testimony of Haft, filmed in 2007 and preserved within USC Shoah Foundation's Visual History Archive.