Taika Waititi, Mia Wasikowska, David Walliams, Richard Roxburgh and Penelope Wilton will star alongside Robyn Nevin and newcomer Iona Bell in the screen adaptation of David Walliams’ bestselling children’s book, FING!.
Shooting in Queensland, FING! follows librarians Mr. and Mrs. Meek, (Harrison and Wasikowska) who will do anything to keep their darling daughter, Myrtle (Bell), happy. But it’s not enough for Myrtle who always wants more.
When Myrtle declares she wants a Fing, her parents have no choice but to track one down, taking them to the furthest and darkest corners of the jungle.
Fing turns out to be as much as a destructive monster as Myrtle, who in turn, must battle it out with the evil animal park owner, The Viscount (Waititi), who is determined to own this rarest of creatures.
Walliams said: ‘FING! is such a fun and visual story with so many flights of fancy and I can’t wait to see it come to life on screen. To have Taika join the cast is absolutely thrilling as well. He’s a fantastic comedy performer, writer and director and I know he’ll have enormous fun playing the villainous role of the Viscount.’
Waititi said: ‘I was really thinking of my (now teenage) daughters when the role came to me. I can’t wait to unleash this absolutely mental Viscount character on audiences. It’s dark, it’s weird, it’s me!’
Producer Todd Fellman said: ‘It’s exciting to have our international team of cast and crew in Brisbane to create what promises to be a wildly fun and entertaining story.
‘Working with Screen Queensland once again continues to provide the perfect platform to create a film of international scale and quality which will resonate with audiences of all ages across the globe.’
FING! Creative team
The fantasy feature film is led by a world-class creative team, co-written by three-time BAFTA award winner David Walliams and Emmy-award winner, Kevin Cecil with multi-award-winning director Jeffrey Walker (Apple Cider Vinegar, The Portable Door, The Artful Dodger) at the helm.
Executive producers are Walliams and Shana Levine (The Dry),and Sky’s Head of Original Film, Andrew Orr, alongside producer Jo Sargent (Absolutely Fabulous, Malory Towers) and co-producer Todd Fellman (The Portable Door).
Special effects have been developed with world-renowned, New Zealand based concept designers at Wētā Workshop. Principal filming commenced this February at Screen Queensland Studios in Brisbane, Australia secured through Screen Queensland’s Production Attraction Strategy.
FING! Production details
The film is an official Australian UK co-production led by Jo Sargent from London-based King Bert Productions, and Todd Fellman from Queensland’s Story Bridge Films; with AGC Studios co-financing and handling worldwide sales and distribution.
FING! will be released theatrically in Australia and New Zealand via Transmission, then exclusively on Stan, as a Stan Original Film. Sky is developing the film in the UK. Financing provided by Elevate Media Capital. Stan Executive Producers are Cailah Scobie and Alicia Brown.
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