The move, which was finalized several months ago, is one of the first for Curry’s burgeoning media career and one of the first to be revealed since the Golden State Warrior point guard officially launched his banner, Unanimous Media, earlier this year.
NBA superstar Stephen Curry has quietly come aboard Breakthrough, a faith-based drama from Fox 2000, as an executive producer.
The move, which was finalized several months ago, is one of the first for Curry’s burgeoning media career and one of the first to be revealed since the Golden State Warriors point guard officially launched his banner, Unanimous Media, earlier this year.
Unanimous, which has an overall film and TV deal with Sony Pictures Entertainment, is developing many of its own projects, but Curry couldn’t pass up getting involved with Breakthrough since it dovetailed with his own focus on faith and family-friendly material.
Based on a book by Joyce Smith titled The Impossible, Breakthrough tells the true story of how Joyce’s son, John Smith, fell through the ice and drowned, and was declared legally dead. A hour later, however, the basketball-loving 14-year-old was miraculously revived through the power of prayer.
This Is Us actress Chrissy Metz stars as Smith, while Topher Grace plays a pastor. Breakthrough is set for a April 12, 2019, release.
“John’s story is nothing short of incredible,” said Curry in a statement to THR. “It’s a story about the power of prayer and perseverance and one I immediately connected to. After reading the script, I knew I wanted to be a part of bringing it to life onscreen.”
DeVon Franklin, who focuses on faith-based projects and produced Breakthrough, said Curry was moved by the true-life story and the movie “checks all his boxes: faith, true story, family and sports.” Curry and Franklin had a meeting on general movie projects and Franklin pitched him Breakthrough, the movie he was working at the time. Franklin gave him the script, which Curry read almost immediately; 24 hours later the basketball star was ready to get involved.
Curry and his co-founders at Unanimous, Jeron Smith and Erick Peyton, gave overall notes on themes tackled in the movie as well detailed notes on a couple of key scenes. They also gave editorial notes on the basketball scenes and helped license some of the imagery in the film.
“When we first set out in the entertainment business, we had a simple objective: we wanted to tell stories that would move people,” Peyton, Unanimous’ co-founder and CCO, told THR in a statement. “It’s been paramount that we work on projects that are meaningful and resonant, and Breakthrough perfectly embodies what Unanimous and Stephen stand for.”
Curry will also help with the marketing of the movie in the run-up to its release.
“He will bring attention to this story, which I think is powerful,” stated Franklin.
The movie is already starting to build a grassroots campaign, and Curry is expected to be a player in that via videos and social media.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
