The Dead of Winter Acquired by Vertical

Vertical has acquired North American rights to Brian Kirk’s action thriller The Dead of Winter, starring and executive produced by Emma Thompson (Love Actually, Good Luck to You, Leo Grande). The film will be released in theaters in the fourth quarter of 2025.

The film also stars Judy Greer (The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, Halloween Kills), Marc Menchaca (Companion, Ozark), Laurel Marsden (Ms. Marvel), Gaia Wise (The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim), Lloyd Hutchinson (Mickey 17), and Brían F. O’Byrne (Conclave, Three Women).

With the screenplay by Nicholas Jacobson-Larson and Dalton Leeb, The Dead of Winter follows a widowed fisherwoman (Thompson) trapped in a Minnesotan blizzard who interrupts the kidnapping of a teenager (Marsden), only to realize that she is the young victim’s only hope. The film is Kirk’s follow-up to the 2019 movie 21 Bridges.

“The Dead of Winter is a merciless thriller, set in an epic wilderness with a beautiful love story at its heart. Emma Thompson gives a stunning performance unlike anything she has ever done before,” stated Kirk.

“The movie has been a passion project for all of us and we are thrilled to have partnered with Vertical, who feel as strongly as we do, that this is a movie that will live with audiences, long after they have left the cinema.”

“The Dead of Winter embodies everything we love at Vertical – an outstanding cast, a gripping premise, and a visionary director. We can’t wait to bring it to North American audiences later this year,” added Vertical partner Peter Jarowey.

The film, previously known as The Fisherwoman, was produced by Jon Berg and Greg Silverman of Stampede Ventures, Jonas Katzenstein and Maximilian Leo of augenschein, and is executive produced by Emma Thompson, Gideon Yu, Chris Bosco, Elizabeth A. Bell, Oana Iancu, Jonathan Saubach, Klaus Dohle, Samuel Hall and Michael Rothstein.

The additional below-the-line talent includes director of photography Christopher Ross (Shogun), production designer David Hindle (Matilda: The Musical), editor Tim Murrell (Monkey Man), and costume designer Natalie Humphries (The Day of the Jackal).

The casting was by John Papsidera (Oppenheimer) and Nathan Toth, and the music was by Volker Bertelmann (All Quiet on the Western Front). Leonine Studios and ZDF acted as co-producers, North.Five.Six. is handling the international sales.

The deal was negotiated by Jarowey and SVP of Acquisitions Tony Piantedosi on behalf of Vertical and by Nick Ogiony of CAA Media Finance and Jim Meenaghan of Stampede and Andreas Rübo of augenschein on behalf of the filmmakers.