The Upside

For the 2010 film directed by Ken Horstmann, see Upside (film).

The Upside
Theatrical release poster
Directed byNeil Burger
Screenplay byJon Hartmere
Based onThe Intouchables
by Éric Toledano
Olivier Nakache
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyStuart Dryburgh
Edited byNaomi Geraghty
Music byRob Simonsen
Production
company
Distributed by
Release dates
  • September 8, 2017 (2017-09-08) (TIFF)
  • January 11, 2019 (2019-01-11) (United States)
Running time
126 minutes[2]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$37.5 million[3]
Box office$125.9 million[3]

The Upside is a 2017 American comedy drama film directed by Neil Burger, written by Jon Hartmere. It is a remake of the French 2011 film The Intouchables, which was itself inspired by the lives of Abdel Sallou and Philippe Pozzo di Borgo. The film follows a paralyzed billionaire (Bryan Cranston) who strikes up an unlikely friendship with a recently paroled convict (Kevin Hart) whom he hires to take care of him. Nicole Kidman, Golshifteh Farahani, and Julianna Margulies also star. It is the third remake of The Intouchables after the Indian film Oopiri, and the Argentinian film Inseparables (2016).[4]

An English-language remake was first announced in July 2011. Numerous actors were rumored to star, including Chris Rock, Idris Elba, Colin Firth and Jessica Chastain, and different directors, including Paul Feig and Simon Curtis, were attached to direct. Hart officially signed on in October 2014, Cranston in March 2016, and Burger to direct that August. Filming began in Philadelphia in January 2017.

The film premiered at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival.[5] Originally to be distributed by The Weinstein Company in March 2018, the film was shelved and sold off following the Harvey Weinstein sexual abuse allegations. It was eventually bought by STX Entertainment and Lantern Entertainment (the successor of TWC), which then released it in the United States on January 11, 2019, becoming Lantern's first release. The Upside grossed $122 million worldwide and received mixed reviews from critics, who praised Hart and Cranston's chemistry and performances but criticized the plot for being "predictable and cliché".[6]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference prime was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "The Upside (12)". British Board of Film Classification. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
  3. ^ a b "The Upside (2019)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved August 8, 2019.
  4. ^ Meunier, Emilie (September 6, 2017). "Remake américain d'Intouchables : Eric Toledano et Olivier Nakache ont vu les premières images... et ils ont été étonnés ! (VIDÉO)". Télé-Loisirs.fr (in French). Yahoo. Archived from the original on 2022-06-28. Retrieved January 4, 2019.
  5. ^ "Toronto Film Festival 2017 Unveils Strong Slate". Deadline Hollywood. 25 July 2017. Retrieved July 25, 2017.
  6. ^ Libbey, Dirk (January 11, 2017). "The Upside Reviews Are In, Here's What Critics Are Saying". CinemaBlend. Retrieved January 12, 2019.