Terrence Malick’s ‘A Hidden Life’ Lands Year-End Awards Season Release

Fox Searchlight’s first Cannes acquisition under parent Disney, Terrence Malick’s A Hidden Life, will open on Dec. 13.

The pic, which Searchlight snapped up for $12M-$14M, tells the story of Austrian farmer-turned-WWII conscientious objector Franz Jägerstätter, who refused to fight for the Nazis. The production, which cost in the high single digits, is reportedly the director’s longest production ever at three years from pre-production to final cut.

Searchlight released Malick’s Tree of Life, which starred Brad Pitt and a then fresh-face Jessica Chastain, on the heat of its Cannes Palme d’Or win in the summer of 2011 making $13.3M and ultimately notching three Oscar nominations for Best Picture, Malick as director and Emmanuel Lubezki’s DP work.

Coming out of Cannes, A Hidden Life landed a 74% fresh Rotten Tomatoes rating from 42 reviews. The pic stars August Diehl as Jägerstätter, Valerie Pachner as his wife, and the late Michael Nyqvist and Bruno Ganz. Grant Hill, Josh Jeter, Elisabeth Bentley and Dario Bergesio produce.