'The Runaways' To Be Released March 19th

When we showed you the temporary poster for The Runaways, which is premiering at Sundance next month, we said that its rights were probably not going to remain open very long. Somebody was bound to swoop in and get a distribution deal signed for a Kristen Stewart/Dakota Fanning movie with tremendous youth appeal. And we were right. We just got the timing wrong.
Click for the whole image There are plenty of deals made at Sundance, and this was certainly a good candidate, but Apparition didn't want to wait that long, snatch up the US distribution rights. Apparition is a fairly new company with some quality veteran leadership, and it was exciting when they stepped up to the plate to distribute Black Dynamite, but Apparition and Sony shut it down after two weeks. Two weeks! It's still playing here and there, but not part of the official release. So it paid $2 million for that and made less than a quarter of that back. I have a feeling The Runaways will fare better, but stranger things have happened. The company has done slightly better with Bright Star and Boondock Saints 2, and it has The Young Victoria in some awards discussions for Emily Blunt's performance, but Apparition isn't exactly firing on all cylinders just yet. Here's the synopsis of the film, in case you're unfamiliar with who The Runaways are:

The film follows two friends, Joan Jett (Kristen Stewart) and Cherie Currie (Dakota Fanning), as they rise from rebellious Southern California kids to rock stars of the now legendary group that paved the way for future generations of girl bands. They fall under the Svengali-like influence of rock impresario Kim Fowley (Michael Shannon), who turns the group into an outrageous success and a family of misfits. With its tough-chick image and raw talent, the band quickly earns a name for itself—and so do its two leads: Joan is the band’s pure rock’ n’ roll heart, while Cherie, with her Bowie-Bardot looks, is the sex kitten.

After its Sundance premiere, Apparation plans to release the film on March 19th.