Melissa Barrera will be sleeping throughout the U.S.
Gravitas Ventures has picked up the North American rights to the drama All the World is Sleeping, starring the 32-year-old Mexican actress and Scream reboot star.
The film is slated for release in theaters and on demand on March 17.
Written and directed by Ryan Lacen, All the World is Sleeping follows Chama (Barrera), who as a young girl in New Mexico, strived to be different from her mother. Now in her twenties, she’s found herself falling into a similar cycle of generational addiction. This struggle then threatens her balance as a mother to her own daughter. As Chama tries to keep it all together, a harrowing accident will spiral her out of control, causing her daughter to be taken from her custody. With nothing left, she’ll have to confront her past in order to fight for a future — one that can either guide her closer to getting her daughter back or lead her deeper into this dangerous cycle.
The film also stars Jackie Cruz, Jorge Garcia, Kristen Gutoskie, Valentina Herrera, Lisandra Tena and Luis Bordonada.
“This film is not only based on the lived experiences of seven women with a history of addiction, it was made by them. Through a unique collaboration with the non-profit Bold Futures, their stories and input shaped this film throughout its development and production,” Lacen told Deadline. “As a director, whose own family has been affected by addiction, my intention was to create a film that felt truthful while unraveling in a unique, visually cerebral way. All the World is Sleeping is grounded in the axiom that while this is a movie, we understand that these moments are happening all around us. Hopefully it gets the audience talking.”
“We are thrilled to be bringing All the World is Sleeping to theaters and homes this upcoming March,” added Gravitas’ Senior Director of Acquisitions, Danielle Gasher. “Melissa Barrera delivers an incredible performance as a young mother battling addiction. We are proud to be the North American partner for such a hard-hitting drama.”
Barrera was introduced as Sam Carpenter — the daughter of Ghostface killer Billy Loomis, who comes to have her own brush with death — in 2022’s Scream relaunch from Paramount, and will reprise the role in the classic horror franchise’s latest entry Scream IV, out on March 10.
Also coming up for her is the Kwame Kwei-Armah film The Collaboration, based on the play of the same name, which has her starring alongside Paul Bettany, Daniel Brühl, Jeremy Pope and more.