Idris Elba’s Green Door Pictures Strikes Film & TV Deal With ‘Riviera’ Producer Archery

Deadline I January 11 2021

Golden Globe-winner Idris Elba and Riviera and Kick-Ass producer Kris Thykier are entering into a joint venture that will see their respective production companies, Elba’s Green Door Pictures and Thykier’s Archery Pictures, working together on multiple film and TV projects.

Through the new partnership with Archery, UK outfit Green Door hopes to ramp up its development and production slate following on from Sky comedy series In The Long Run and upcoming Netflix feature Concrete Cowboy, both starring Luther and Hobbs & Shaw actor Elba. The company is soon due to begin production on BBC non-scripted series Fight School, co-produced with WorkerBee.

London-based Archery is currently in post-production on war movie Operation Mincemeat starring Colin Firth, new fantasy series Fate: The Winx Saga for Netflix, and the third season of Sky Atlantic’s hit drama Riviera.

Elba said: “I’m excited to begin a partnership with Kris on upcoming film and television projects and to start this collaboration with his team at Archery. Building Green Door has been a steep learning curve and a thrilling ride. I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved. Now I believe we are ready to take the next step in our growth as a company, and our alliance with Archery will facilitate and accelerate that process.”

Thykier commented “Idris Elba is a global superstar, one of the best actors of his generation, an acclaimed director and a genuine force of nature, I look forward to working closely with him through this next phase of his career. With Green Door Pictures, he has built a production company founded on the core values of ‘paying it backwards’, providing support and opportunities for creative talent from diverse backgrounds, whom might otherwise fall outside of established industry norms and practices. All of us at Archery look forward to working with Idris and his colleagues on developing new projects that build on his talents as well as helping underpin his company’s goals.”

Actor, director and producer Elba founded Green Door in 2013 with the aim to develop new and established talent to champion inclusion, representation and diversity. Credits also include Netflix comedy series Turn Up Charlie.

In November of last year, Archery announced the launch of Mews Films, a new production label focused on the development of a slate of comedy movies for the UK theatrical market. The venture is a partnership with Danny Perkins’s Elysian Film Group.