Emerging from a heated bidding war, Universal has landed the rights to The Pact, a new comedy starring Leslie Mann, Ike Barinholtz and WWE superstar John Cena.
An April 20, 2018 release date is in place, with Pitch Perfect scribe Kay Cannon on board to make her directorial debut. There are precious few story details available at the moment, but we understand the comedy involves a trio of middle-aged parents who uncover their daughters’ pact to lose their virginity at prom. Distraught, they launch a covert one-night operation to prevent any sexual tomfoolery long in advance, which will no doubt lead to all kinds of awkward encounters. No further casting details were revealed at this early stage, but we assume Mann, Barinholtz and John Cena will anchor The Pact as those three terribly flustered parents.
The latter continues to make inroads into Hollywood, and will soon be seen opposite Aaron Taylor-Johnson for wartime thriller The Wall. Mann, meanwhile, is no stranger to the field of comedy, and recently appeared across both The Other Woman and How To Be Single. As for Ike Barinholtz, the American actor and comedian held a small role as Griggs in David Ayer’s Suicide Squad, and will soon reunite with the filmmaker for Netflix’s Bright. Behind the scenes on The Pact, Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg and James Weaver will all produce under their Point Grey Pictures banner.
Kay Cannon’s directorial debut is officially beginning to coalesce, but before that 2018 release, Pitch Perfect 3 looms large. Filming on Universal’s musical threequel is now underway ahead of its bow on December 22, 2017.
