HBO Acquires Barry Levinson’s "The Survivor"

The Survivor/New Mandate Films and BRON Studios, 

 Source: HBO Press Release 

HBO announced on October 4 that it has acquired the North American rights to Barry Levinson's new film "The Survivor." 

"The Survivor" is based on the incredible true story of Harry Haft, who, after being sent to Auschwitz, survives not only the unspeakable horrors of the camp, but the gladiatorial boxing spectacle he is forced to perform with his fellow prisoners for the amusement of his captors. 

Unbeknownst to those who try to destroy him, Haft is driven by the most important reason any man has to survive, a quest to reunite with the woman he loves. After a daring escape, he makes his way to New York, where he succeeds in using his boxing skills to establish a name for himself in the hopes of finding his one true love.  His indomitable spirit lands him in the ring with boxing legends like Rocky Marciano as he fights to make sense of his past and reclaim the life that was stolen from him.

The film’s production was aided by a team at USC Shoah Foundation, who provided detailed historical consulting in addition to access to a testimony of Haft, filmed in 2007 and preserved within USC Shoah Foundation's Visual History Archive.

The film stars Ben Foster (“Leave No Trace,” “Hell or High Water”) as Harry Haft, with Vicky Krieps (“Phantom Thread”), Billy Magnussen (“No Time to Die”), Peter Sarsgaard (“Jackie”), Saro Emirze (“Wilsberg”), Dar Zuzovsky (“Hostages”), Danny DeVito (“It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia”), and John Leguizamo (“Latin History for Morons”) rounding out the cast.

 "The Survivor" was produced by New Mandate Films’ Matti Leshem (“The Shallows”), BRON Studios’ Aaron L. Gilbert (“Bombshell,” “Monster,” “The Front Runner”), Baltimore Pictures’ Jason Sosnoff (HBO’s “Paterno” and “The Wizard of Lies”) and Barry Levinson (“Donnie Brasco,” “Bugsy”) and Scott Pardo (“Hope & A Little Sugar”). Executive Producers are Joel Greenberg, Ben Foster, Danny Devito, Brenda Gilbert, Steven Thibault, Ashley Levinson, Anjay Nagpal, Ron McLeod, Jason Cloth and Richard McConnell.

"The Survivor" had its world premiere screening at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival. 

WME Independent brokered the deal with HBO.