Sony Classics Lands 'Wishful Thinking' After SXSW Win
Get the Culture newsletter
Daily culture — film, music, books, the trends and ideas worth your attention. Free.
- Sony Pictures Classics acquired worldwide rights to Wishful Thinking following the film's world premiere and top Narrative Feature prize win at SXSW, with the deal negotiated against UTA Independent Film Group
- Graham Parkes wrote and directed the film, which follows a volatile couple whose relationship struggles trigger supernatural effects — earthquakes, stock-market swings, and geopolitical chaos — as they confront a mysterious pair of twin healers
- Maya Hawke and Lewis Pullman lead the cast as Julia, an ambitious game designer, and Charlie, a struggling musician; supporting cast includes Randall Park, Amita Rao, Jake Shane, Kate Berlant, and Kerri Kenney-Silver
- Highway 10 fully financed the film, with producers including Pullman through his Buckwild Pictures banner, Dan Gedman and Matt Smith for Highway 10, and Kara Durrett for Pinky Promise — the latter a returning SPC collaboration partner
- Parkes called Sony Pictures Classics "a singular champion of independent cinema for nearly 35 years," framing the acquisition as career validation after his cast and crew's "passionate work," while SPC pitched the film as a theatrical romcom "for a new generation of moviegoers"
Why it matters: SPC's pickup gives a theatrical release runway to a buzzy SXSW title in a romcom lane the distributor has long championed, while the deal extends SPC's working relationship with Pinky Promise and opens a new one with Highway 10 — both relevant to how indie romcoms secure financing-to-distribution pipelines in 2026.
Ask SkimNews
