SONY PICTURES CLASSICS TO RELEASE BENJAMIN MILLEPIED’S ‘CARMEN’, STARRING MELISSA BARRERA AND PAUL MESCAL, ON APRIL 21 IN NEW YORK AND LOS ANGELES

NEW YORK (February 1, 2023) – Sony Pictures Classics announced today that they will release Benjamin Millepied’s feature directorial debut, CARMEN, in theaters in New York and Los Angeles on April 21, 2023 before expanding over the following weeks. The film had its world premiere at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival last September and stars Melissa Barrera, Academy Award^® nominee Paul Mescal, Rossy de Palma, The D.O.C., Benedict Hardie, Richard Brancatisano, and Elsa Pataky.

Written by Academy Award^® winner Alexander Dinelaris (BIRDMAN), Loïc Barrère, and Millepied, and produced by Dimitri Rassam and Rosemary Blight, CARMEN is a complete reimagining of George Bizet’s opera and Prosper Mérimée’s novella of the same name. The film features an original score from three-time Academy Award^®-nominated, Grammy^®-nominated, and Emmy^®-winning composer Nicholas Britell, who also served as an executive producer and co-wrote original songs and dances with Academy Award^® nominee Taura Stinson, legendary rapper and songwriter The D.O.C., and Grammy^®-winning singer-songwriter Julieta Venegas.

Benjamin Millepied’s CARMEN is a gritty modern-day tale, with a majestic score by Britell and dream-like dance sequences that evoke magic realism. The story follows a young and fiercely independent woman who is forced to flee her home in the Mexican desert following the brutal murder of her mother, another strong and mysterious woman. Carmen (Barrera) survives a terrifying and dangerous illegal border crossing into the US, only to be confronted by a lawless volunteer border guard who cold-bloodedly murders two other immigrants in her group. When the border guard and his patrol partner, Aidan (Mescal)—a Marine with PTSD—become embroiled in a deadly standoff, Carmen and Aidan are forced to escape together. They make their way north toward Los Angeles in search of Carmen’s mother’s best friend, the mercurial Masilda (De Palma) and owner of La Sombra nightclub—a sanctuary of music and dance. Carmen and Aidan find both solace and their unwavering love for each other in the safety of Masilda’s magical refuge, but time is running out as the police hunt closes in.

ABOUT SONY PICTURES CLASSICS     

Michael Barker and Tom Bernard serve as co-presidents of Sony Pictures Classics—an autonomous division of Sony Pictures Entertainment they founded with Marcie Bloom in January 1992—which distributes, produces, and acquires independent films from around the world.  Barker and Bernard have released prestigious films that have won 41 Academy Awards® (37 of those at Sony Pictures Classics) and have garnered 186 Academy Award® nominations (160 at Sony Pictures Classics) including Best Picture nominations for THE FATHER, CALL ME BY YOUR NAME, WHIPLASH, AMOUR, MIDNIGHT IN PARIS, AN EDUCATION, CAPOTE, HOWARDS END, and CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON.

ABOUT SONY PICTURES ENTERTAINMENT    

Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) is a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation. SPE's global operations encompass motion picture production, acquisition, and distribution; television production, acquisition, and distribution; television networks; digital content creation and distribution; operation of studio facilities; and development of new entertainment products, services and technologies. SPE’s Motion Picture Group production organizations include Columbia Pictures, Sony Pictures Animation, Screen Gems, TriStar Pictures, 3000 Pictures, Stage 6 Films, AFFIRM Films, and Sony Pictures Classics. For additional information, visit http://www.sonypictures.com/corp/divisions.html.