Academy Award winner Daniel Kaluuya is set to make his screenwriting debut with a dystopian film – The Kitchen. The movie has been greenlit by Netflix. Written alongside Joe Murtagh (Gangs of London), the movie is based on an original idea from Kaluuya, Kibwe Tavares (“Noughts + Crosses”) and Daniel Emmerson (“Calm with Horses”). Kaluuya will also produce the film under his 59% Productions company. Emmerson and Michael Fassbender are co-producers on the movie.
The brit star – Kaluuya – achieved a breakthrough after starring in Jordan Peele’s popular horror film Get Out, which garnered him a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor. He later won the Academy Award for best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Black Panther party leader in ‘Judas and the Black Messiah’. This made him the first British actor of African heritage to win an Academy Award.
The official synopsis reveals that the movie is set in London 2044 where the gap between rich and poor has been stretched to its limits. All forms of social housing have been eradicated and London’s working classes have been forced to live in temporary accommodation on the outskirts of the city. The story follows Izi, a resident who is desperately trying to find a way out and 12-year-old Benji, who has lost his mother and is searching for a family, as they battle to survive.
The Kitchen was selected for the Sundance Screenwriting and Directing Lab in 2016. Actor and musician Kane Robinson (Top Boy) is casted to play the lead role of Izi. Newcomer Jedaiah Bannerman is set to play the role of Benji. The movie is also a directorial debut of co-creator Kibwe Tavares who has been awarded the Sundance special jury award for his animated short Robots of Brixton and was nominated for the Sundance short film grand jury prize for Jonah, which starred Kaluuya.
The movie will be shot in London and Paris with a release date in 2023. The movie will release on Netflix – making this the latest movie to be approved by Netflix’s new UK features team.
Daniel Kaluuya also moves ahead with his acting career with two of his upcoming movies in post-production stages – Nope and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. With him now showcasing his creativity behind the scenes, the actor is expanding his domain.c