Thruline Entertainment Signs ‘Nutcrackers’ Scribe Leland Douglas

EXCLUSIVE: Leland Douglas, the screenwriter behind the David Gordon Green comedy Nutcrackers, has signed with Thruline Entertainment for management.

Marking Ben Stiller’s first star vehicle in a few years, Nutcrackers has him playing the work-obsessed Mike, who must reluctantly travel to rural Ohio to look after his four rambunctious nephews after their parents die in a car accident. What begins as a three-day trip to find foster care turns into weeks of farm-life mayhem – and the realization that he doesn’t need to find them a home, they’ve found one for him.

The film is coming off of its premiere as the opening film of the Toronto Film Festival, where it sold to Hulu for eight figures, in the first splashy deal of the fest. Also starring Linda Cardellini, Edi Patterson, Tim Heidecker and Toby Hussles, pic is produced by Rivulet’s Rob Paris and Mike Witherill, and Rough House’s Nate Meyer. Hulu will release it for Christmas.

Currently developing a new feature with Rough House after several past efforts with the company, including Nutcrackers, Douglas was a butler at the Playboy Mansion and Robert Towne’s personal assistant before launching his writing career. Previously, he was the editor of a men’s humor magazine, and his diverse work includes writing and directing plays, short films, family films, and projects for clients such as Playboy TV, Superdeluxe, and the Lifetime Movie Channel.

Other notable clients at Thruline include actors Allison Janney, Eric Stonestreet, Michael Cera, Sadie Stanley, Ron Livingston, John Hawkes and Blair Underwood, and writers Annie Mumolo, Kirk Ellis, Steve Franks, Eddie Gorodetsky, Christopher Moynihan, Barry Julien, Bill Oakley, Robert Smigel, George Pelecanos and John Rogers, to name just a few.