Sam Worthington and Jason Clarke to Star in ‘First Warrior,’ Warwick Thornton‘s Australian Aboriginal Resistance Epic (EXCLUSIVE)
Warwick Thornton, one of Australia’s leading filmmakers, is confirmed to direct “First Warrior,” an epic about Aboriginal resistance fighter Pemulwuy. The creative, on-screen and producing teams are equally stellar.
Australia was colonized in the late 1700s. Pemulwuy, a man of the Bidjigal tribes — from the region that is today modern-day Sydney — led a 12-year resistance against British settlers moving into his people’s traditional lands.
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The film’s core creators are an all-Indigenous team including Thornton, writer Jon Bell (“The Moogai,” “Cleverman”) and writer-producer Andrew Dillon (“Le Champion,” “Outliers”).
Dillon, who is a direct descendent of both the Dharug and Gomeroi people, will produce through his That’s-A-Wrap Productions company. No sales agent is yet attached.
Stuart Beattie, the Oscar-winning screenwriter with credits including “Collateral” and “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl,” has also come on board alongside Phillip Noyce (“Rabbit-Proof Fence,” “Salt”) and Shana Levine (“The Portable Door,” “Charlie & Boots”).
A search is underway to cast the roles of Pemulwuy and Bennelong, who was kidnapped by Governor Arthur Phillip to start a dialogue with Indigenous Australians. Sam Worthington (“Avatar,” “Hacksaw Ridge”) and “Oppenheimer” star Jason Clarke are already confirmed to star.
That’s-A-Wrap Productions is an Indigenous First Nations owned and operated production company. The film also claims support of the Bidjigal, Dharawal and Dharug Elders.
Born in Alice Springs, Thornton was a DJ and cinematographer before turning to shorts and later feature filmmaking. His “Samson and Delilah” won Cannes’ Camera d’Or prize for best first film in 2009. He has subsequently directed the 2017 film “Sweet Country” and last year’s Cannes contender “The New Boy,” slotting in 2020 TV series “Mystery Road” in between. His son, Dylan River, has since expanded the “Mystery Road” franchise and was at Toronto International Film Festival last month with “Thou Shalt Not Steal.”
Thornton said, “I am so honored to be a part of this amazing film. It’s an important story with an awesome script and legendary actors.”
Added Dillon: “It has been a lifelong goal of mine to have our Indigenous warriors celebrated on the silver screen. I can’t wait for audiences to not only experience Warwick’s vision for this story but to leave the cinema with a newfound appreciation of Australia’s shared history.”
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