The Brit 50: Heyday Films

Need to know: Founded by David Heyman in 1997, Heyday Films has thrived as a creative engine bringing powerful British IP to the screen that connects deeply with global audiences. The eight-film Harry Potter franchise grossed $7.7bn globally for Warner Bros and is returning to screens as a TV series, while Paul King’s first two Paddington films are regularly cited in the canon of best family features of all time, even if the third, last year’s Paddington In Peru, did not quite reach the same giddy creative heights.

Along the way, Heyday has found success with non-franchise properties too, including Alfonso Cuaron’s Gravity, and ventured into adult drama with 2014’s Testament Of Youth and 2016’s The Light Between Oceans. In recent years, Heyman has also segued into producing studio blockbusters for big-name US directors, namely Quentin Tarantino on Sony Pictures’ Once Upon A Time… In Holly­wood and Greta Gerwig on Warner Bros’ Barbie; he has also struck up a collaboration with Noah Baumbach on the writer/director’s Netflix trio: Marriage Story, White Noise and recent Venice premiere Jay Kelly.

Recent highlights from Heyday’s TV division, set up as a joint venture with NBCUniversal International Studios in 2015, include two seasons of mystery thriller The Capture starring Holliday Grainger for the BBC, with a third in post; and Apples Never Fall starring Annette Bening for Peacock.

Regarding the Harry Potter series, now in production and scheduled to debut on HBO in 2027 with an eight-episode first season, Heyman says he is very involved in all aspects. “I’m not the showrunner, we have a wonderful showrunner in Francesca Gardiner and we have the brilliant Mark Mylod supervising the [first] season and directing the first couple of episodes,” he says. “I’m there to discuss all key things. I’ve spent a lot of time in this world so hopefully I have a few things to offer.

“It’s such fun to be able to go and revisit,” he adds. “There are things that you either look at through a different prism or want to do [differently]. It’s a great opportunity.”

Then there is the small matter of the James Bond franchise, which Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson’s Eon Productions finally relinquished control of earlier this year to Amazon MGM Studios, and on which Heyman has taken the reins with Amy Pascal to drive the British super-spy in his next iteration. 

“I have a longstanding relationship with Courtenay Valenti,” says Heyman of how he came to be involved, referencing the long-time Warner Bros executive who is now head of theatrical and streaming film at Amazon MGM.

The Heyday head says no timeline has been set on when the first feature in the relaunched franchise will be made or released – “Denis [Villeneuve] is still filming Dune [3],” he notes of the director who has been given the keys – or when the seventh actor to portray 007 will be cast and revealed. But it is bound to be a huge priority over the next several years.

“The only thing that I have control over to a degree is finding projects and working with great, talented people who I believe can have the possibility to make something extraordinary,” says Heyman. “It wasn’t always the case. When you start off, you don’t have that opportunity, you’re just trying to squeak by and pay the rent. I was that person for quite a long time, and then life changed and now I’m in a very privileged position.”

For that reason, Heyman is also passionate about the London Screen Academy (LSA), which he co-founded with Broccoli, Wilson, Working Title’s Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner, and Lisa Bryer. The Islington-based sixth-form college, which has 900 students, many from underrepresented backgrounds, seeks to train the next generation of filmmakers, and Heyman regularly employs LSA graduates on Heyday productions (including around 20 on the Harry Potter series).

“It’s a responsibility to broaden the make-up of the industry and give opportunities to people who might not otherwise see themselves working in the industry. It’s important to bring on the next generation to fill those jobs,” says Heyman, whose current team at Heyday numbers 12 across film and TV departments.

Key personnel: David Heyman, founder/producer; Jeffrey Clifford, president; Rosie Alison, Rob Silva, producers; Danny Samit, head of Heyday Television US.

Incoming: As well as the Harry Potter series and James Bond, other high-profile projects in the works include the sequel to Wonka, with Paul King again on co-writing and directing duties; the debut feature of Christopher Storer, creator of Disney+ hit The Bear, an adaptation of Amor Towles’ New York Times bestseller The Lincoln Highway; a film project with The Babadook writer/director Jennifer Kent; a new Pippi Longstocking feature with Studio­canal that recently attached a writer and director; and miniseries adaptations of Daphne du Maurier’s The Birds and Ray Bradbury’s The Martian Chronicles.

As well as season three of The Capture, projects in post-production include Luca Guadagnino’s Artificial for Amazon MGM Studios, starring Andrew Garfield as OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and Klara And The Sun, based on Kazuo Ishiguro’s 2021 dystopian sci-fi novel, which Taika Waititi directed and Sony Pictures will release next year.

David Heyman says: “I don’t want to make ‘product’ – that doesn’t interest me. I want to make films and shows that move people, with filmmakers and creators who have stories to tell that will affect, inspire and challenge. Directors and shows that make people look at the world a little bit differently, or just bring a bit of joy in challenging times.”

Contact: office@heydayfilms.com 

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