CBS Studios and Stampede Ventures have partnered under their international first-look agreement on a new limited-event series TANGO, which examines the tumultuous events surrounding the making of the 1973 feature film Last Tango in Paris.
Lisa Brühlmann (Killing Eve, The Girl Before) and José Padilha (Narcos, Elite Squad) will co-direct the series, with Greg Silverman and JP Sarni of Stampede Ventures to executive produce. Meghan Lyvers, Senior Vice President of International Co-Productions and Development at CBS Studios, will shepherd the project for the studio.
CBS Studios and Stampede Ventures will be taking the series to market in early 2022.
The series, written by Jeremy Miller and Daniel Cohn, will span the 18 months before, during and after the production of Italian auteur Bernardo Bertolucci’s “Last Tango in Paris,” and explore questions of identity, fame, and artistic ambition. Told through the lens of those at the center of the events – Maria Schneider, Marlon Brando and Bernardo Bertolucci – the story will capture the collision of three people cemented in history by one of the most shocking cinematic incidents of all time.
Set in Italy, France and the U.S., the series will begin with Bertolucci traveling to Los Angeles in 1971 to convince a broken-down and bankrupt Brando to take a role in his upcoming film – a graphic account of sexual obsession, emotional breakdown and murder.
During the production’s filming, Bertolucci employed ruthless tactics to capture real emotions that ultimately put the actors in harm’s way. Controversy plagued the film following its release in January of 1973, while Brando and Bertolucci profited significantly – the film garnered adjusted gross of $186 Million, the third highest-grossing foreign film to date. The actor and the director went on to receive critical acclaim, with Oscar nominations for Best Actor and Best Director, respectively. Schneider, however, was exploited and ridiculed for her part in the film, which led her down a path of addiction and she struggled with mental health. The only compensation she ever received for her role was $4,000.
Brühlmann is eager to shed a light on “Tango’s” narrative, stating: “When José and Stampede approached me, I was instantly taken by the project and the chance to look closer at one of the biggest scandals of our industry’s history – despite it not being treated as such at the time. The opportunity to dive into that world, into all these fascinating characters, and especially the possibility of giving Maria Schneider a voice, is really exciting.”
Added Padilha: “TANGO tells the story of two men abusing a young and unexperienced woman, not for sex, but for the sake of art. They did it on camera, and the resulting scene made it into a major feature film, acclaimed by critics and audiences alike. The director and the actors basked in success, while Maria’s pain was neglected. I’m thrilled to explore a story about the ethics of art, an important but often neglected subject matter, in partnership with director Lisa Brühlmann.”
Brühlmann is Emmy®-nominated for her work on Killing Eve and just shot all four parts of The Girl Before for 42/BBC/HBOMax. She was recently named as one of the Alice Initiative’s 2020 up-and-coming female directors alongside Lulu Wang and Alma Har’el. Padilha, an Emmy®, Peabody and Berlin Golden Bear Award-winning director, is one of the executive producers of Netflix’s critically acclaimed Narcos franchise; he also directed the series’ first two episodes. His documentary films include Bus 174, Garapa and Secrets of the Tribe, which premiered at the Sundance and Berlin Film Festivals.
Miller and Cohn have recently sold multiple features, including Is This Legal to Amazon and The Fall to HBO, and have a Christmas movie, Naughty Or Nice, in pre-production at Endeavor Content.
Brühlmann and Padilha are both individually represented by CAA. Padilha is also represented by Management 360 and attorney Sue Bodine at Cowan DeBaets Abrahams and Sheppard. Miller and Cohn are represented by UTA and Kaplan Perrone.
