Mike Fleming

EXCLUSIVE: Sony Pictures Entertainment has made a two-year exclusive first-look deal with Michael Costigan and his COTA Films. It brings him back to the lot where he spent nine years as an executive working on such films as Charlie’s Angels, Gattaca, The People Versus Larry Flynt, Girl, Interrupted and Bottle Rocket.

The deal was brokered by Columbia Pictures president Doug Belgrad and president of production Hannah Minghella.

Costigan left Sony and was exec producer of Ang Lee’s Brokeback Mountain, before he took the role of president for Ridley and Tony Scott’s Scott Free, where he served from 2005 to 2012. There, he was exec producer of Prometheus, The Counselor, Robin Hood, Body Of Lies and American Gangster from the Scott brothers, and he produced the Mark and Jay Duplass pics Cyrus and Welcome to the Rileys. More recently, he produced Stoker, the Park Chan-wook-directed film that stars Mia Wasikowska, Nicole Kidman and Matthew Goode, and the Zal Batmanglij-directed The East, which stars Brit Marling, Ellen Page and Alexander Skarsgard. Both those films premiered at Sundance. Costigan also produced Out Of The Furnace, the Brad Ingelsby-scripted drama directed by Scott Cooper and starring Christian Bale, Casey Affleck and Woody Harrelson.

Related: Scott Free President Michael Costigan Leaving To Be Producer

“We couldn’t be more excited to be back in business with Michael,” Belgrad and Minghella said in a statement. “He has a great eye for material, strong director and talent relationships and has been making interesting, original movies during his years with Scott Free. Of course he remains a great friend and we’re thrilled to be professionally reunited.”

Costigan is joined by Ben Leclair, who most recently produced the Shane Carruth-directed Upstream Color.