Mike Fleming

Lionsgate and Wrekin Hill Entertainment will go for a VOD first release after acquiring the John Stockwell-directed Halle Berry-Olivier Martinez action thriller Dark Tide. Wrekin Hill acquired U.S. rights with Row 1 Productions. Lionsgate will release the film on VOD, electronic sell-through and packaged media. Wrekin Hill will do theatrical. The distribution plan leads off with a three-week Ultra VOD window on March 8th with a theatrical release on March 30th, culminating in a packaged media and Digital Download release. “The star power that Halle Berry brings to Dark Tide paired with a genre that hits VOD audiences make it a perfect addition to our Ultra VOD strategy.” said Jim Packer, Lionsgate President of Worldwide Television and Digital Distribution.

The film was written by Amy Sorlie and Ronnie Christensen and based on a story by Sorlie, and was produced by Jeanette Buerling and Matthew Chausse. Berry plays a shark expert whose business has been failing since a shark attack killed a fellow diver under her command. Once dubbed “the shark whisperer,” Kate is haunted by the memory of the attack and unable to get back into the water. With bills piling up her old boyfriend (Martinez) presents her with a lucrative opportunity: lead a thrill-seeking millionaire businessman on a dangerous shark dive … outside the cage. Battling her self-doubts and fear, Kate accepts the proposal — and sets a course for the world’s deadliest feeding ground: Shark Alley.

The Dark Tide deal was negotiated by Stuart Ford and Jonathan Deckter of IM Global.