Billy Wilder drama to film in Greece, France and Germany

Stephen Frears’ drama Billy Wilder & Me is set to go into production in Greece, Munich and Paris in 2023 with Christoph Waltz in the lead role.

The film is based on Jonathan Coe’s book of the same name, set in the summer of 1977, which follows an innocent young woman who begins working for famed director Billy Wilder and his screenwriter Iz Diamond on a Greek island during the filming of Fedora. When she follows Wilder to Germany to continue the shoot, she finds herself joining him on a journey of memory into the heart of his family history.

Frears is collaborating with two-time Oscar-winning screenwriter Christopher Hampton on the project, having previously worked together on Dangerous Liaisons and Cheri.

Jeremy Thomas’ Recorded Picture Company is producing, alongside Reinhard Brundig and Christos V. Konstantakopoulos. They previously partnered on Jim Jarmusch’s Only Lovers Left Alive, while Thomas’ last film, Jerzy Skolimowski’s EO, won the Jury Prize at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.