Magnolia Picks Up Gustav Möller’s ‘The Guilty’ After Sundance Bow

Magnolia Pictures has made a winning plea for North American rights to The Guilty, director/co-writer Gustav Möller’s drama that premiered Sunday in the World Dramatic Competition at Sundance.

In the film, alarm dispatcher and former police officer Asger Holm (Jakob Cedergren) answers an emergency call from a kidnapped woman. When the call is suddenly disconnected, the search for the woman and her kidnapper begins. With the phone as his only tool, Asger enters a race against time to save the endangered woman. But soon he realizes that he is dealing with a crime that is far bigger than he first thought. Jessica Dinnage, Johan Olsen, Omar Shargawi and Katinka Evers-Jahnsen also star.

Möller and Emil Nygaard Albertsen wrote the screenplay for The Guilty, which hails from Nordisk Film Spring & New Danish Screen. Lina Flint produced it.

“Gustav Möller has devised an ingeniously executed thriller with The Guilty,” Magnolia president Eamonn Bowles said. “This is an incredibly accomplished feature debut, and Magnolia is excited to introduce him to American audiences.”

The deal was negotiated by John Von Thaden, SVP Acquisitions at Magnolia Pictures, and Susan Wendt, Director of International Sales & Marketing at TrustNordisk, on behalf of the filmmakers.