An Oscar win has always eluded the wonderful Annette Bening, while it has been more than 30 years, and her official coming out, since Foster won the last of her Academy Awards. ‘NYAD’, an upcoming Netflix film, has been getting the kind of buzz that could change the game.
Based on Diana Nyad’s book Find a Way, which tells of her unimaginable feat of swimming 110 miles in the open seas between Cuba and Florida at the age of 60, NYAD is a film that sees two other phenomenal women coming together. Annette Bening and Jodie Foster play Nyad and Bonnie Stoll — Nyad’s BFF and coach — respectively.
“A remarkable true story of tenacity, friendship and the triumph of the human spirit, NYAD recounts a riveting chapter in the life of world-class athlete Diana Nyad. Three decades after giving up marathon swimming in exchange for a prominent career as a sports journalist, at the age of 60, Diana (four-time Academy Award nominee Annette Bening) becomes obsessed with completing an epic swim that always eluded her: the 110 mile trek from Cuba to Florida, often referred to as the “Mount Everest” of swims. Determined to become the first person to finish the swim without a shark cage, Diana goes on a thrilling, four-year journey with her best friend and coach Bonnie Stoll (two-time Academy Award winner Jodie Foster) and a dedicated sailing team,” goes the official release by Netflix.
The film is co-directed by the Academy Award-winning documentary filmmakers Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin whose work includes Free Solo and The Rescue. NYAD is produced by Andrew Lazar, p.g.a. and Teddy Schwarzman, p.g.a. with a screenplay by Julia Cox, from the original autobiography by Diana Nyad.
Nyad is an extraordinary woman who conquered her fears and achieved the unimaginable at age 60, when most women are told to stay home and avoid trouble, so this is one film I can’t wait to watch. Someone in Venice told me about how great it is, and honestly, I don’t need much convincing. The film also stars Rhys Ifans, who has turned into a kind of hunk since his turn in Notting Hill as Spike, the goofy roomate. I guess being around fashionistas like Sienna Miller and Anna Friel will do that to a man! Ethan Jones Romero, Luke Cosgrove, Jeena Yi and Eric T. Miller complete the cast.
The film is executive produced by Bill Johnson, Jim Seibel, Michael Heimler, Vanessa Humphrey, Julia Cox and D. Scott Lumpkin. NYAD will hit theaters on October 20th before being streamed on Netflix starting November 3rd. The film, after premiering at Telluride, is in the Toronto International Film Festival line up and will see its European premiere at this year’s BFI London Film Festival in October.
All images courtesy of Netflix, used with permission.