Sleeping Dogs

Launched in 2020, The Avenue is HFG’s U.S. distribution division managing all release windows, from theatrical through home entertainment to television, SVOD and AVOD. The Avenue empowers filmmakers by pioneering innovative marketing and distribution strategies that amplify their stories to connect them with the broadest possible audience while driving commercial success. The Avenue has a partnership with Paramount Pictures to handle home entertainment and airlines. Films released under The Avenue label are a combination of film titles from Highland Film Group as well as third party acquisitions. The Avenue’s releases include successful launches of William Eubank’s action thriller Land of Bad starring Russell Crowe, Liam Hemsworth and Luke Hemsworth; Adam Cooper’s crime thriller Sleeping Dogs starring Russell Crowe and Karen Gillan; and Adrian Grünberg’s shark actioner The Black Demon starring Josh Lucas. Recent titles include the survival thriller Locked produced by Sam Raimi and starring Bill Skarsgård and Academy Award® winner Anthony Hopkins which recently took the 1 spot on Hulu in the U.S. following its theatrical release; Rod Blackhurst’s Tribeca Film Festival and Deauville title Blood For Dust starring Scoot McNairy, Kit Harington and Josh Lucas; Rusty Cundieff’s sci-fi thriller 57 Seconds starring Morgan Freeman and Josh Hutcherson; and Petr Jákl’s sweeping historical action epic Medieval starring Ben Foster, Sophie Lowe and Academy Award® winner Sir Michael Caine. The first feature film title released under the new stand-alone distribution banner was the martial arts sci-fi film Jiu Jitsu starring Academy Award® winner Nicolas Cage and Frank Grillo, followed by Renny Harlin’s The Misfits , starring Pierce Brosnan, Nick Cannon and Tim Roth. Led by founding partners Arianne Fraser and Delphine Perrier, Highland Film Group (HFG) is an award- winning global studio with end-to-end capabilities, driving films from development to release. HFG operates as a producer, financier, distributor and sales agent, with an in-house team that oversees global productions and acquisitions. Launched in 2010, HFG delivers standout films across a wide range of genres and platforms, building a reputation for producing high-octane films in the action, thriller and horror space. In 2020, the studio expanded into U.S. distribution with the successful launch of The Avenue, HFG’s dedicated label managing all release windows, from theatrical through home entertainment to television, SVOD and AVOD. HFG’s diversified production and sales slate includes William Eubank’s action thriller Land of Bad starring Academy Award® winner Russell Crowe, Liam Hemsworth and Luke Hemsworth released on 1,300 screens in February 2024 and surged to the 1 spot on Netflix in the US; Benjamin Brewer’s survival action-thriller Arcadian starring Academy Award® winner Nicolas Cage, official selection at SXSW; Adam Cooper’s crime thriller Sleeping Dogs starring Russell Crowe and Karen Gillan which took the 1 spot on Hulu in the U.S. last year; and Adrian Grünberg’s shark actioner The Black Demon starring Josh Lucas which claimed the 1 spot on Amazon’s streaming rankings for seven consecutive days following its theatrical release in 2023. Upcoming releases include Joe Carnahan’s survival thriller Not Without Hope starring Zachary Levi and Josh Duhamel; the sci-fi thriller The Astronaut produced by Brad Fuller and starring Kate Mara and Laurence Fishburne, world premiere at SXSW; Chuck Russell’s horror thriller Witchboard starring Jamie Campbell Bower; and Allan Ungar’s action comedy London Calling starring Josh Duhamel and Jeremy Ray Taylor. New projects include Justin Chadwick’s action spy-thriller The Mark starring Jessica Alba; the espionage action thriller Stratagem starring Noomi Rapace and Teo Yoo; the thriller Just Play Dead starring Samuel L. Jackson and Eva Green; the action crime thriller Wardriver starring Dane DeHaan and Sasha Calle; Adrian Grunberg’s action