Netflix nabs eco-drama 'The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind'
Actor Chiwetel Ejiofor writes, directs, and co-stars in the film.
Continuing its spurt of new content announcements, Netflix has snagged the global rights to Chiwetel Ejiofor's directorial debut, The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind. The Oscar-nominated thesp's movie will be available on the streaming service worldwide -- barring the UK and Japan, reports Variety.
An adaptation of the eponymous best-seller by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer, itself based on a true story, the film follows 13-year-old protagonist William (played by newcomer Maxwell Simba). Unable to afford school fees, he finds a way of using the parts of the bicycle belonging to his father Trywell (played by Ejiofor) to build a windmill in a bid to save his village in Malawi from famine. Triple-threat Ejiofor also penned the film's screenplay.
Co-financed by BBC Films -- giving the broadcaster the UK rights -- and Participant Media, which has two Netflix movies under its belt in Beasts of No Nation and the upcoming Roma, the film hits Netflix next year and will also get a limited theatrical run (as is becoming the norm for Netflix's awards hopefuls).
