Lords of War, sequel to iconic Lord of War movie, starring Nicolas Cage starts principal photography and relies on Belgium for financing and physical production‍

20 years after the iconic crime thriller Lord of War, from writer and director Andrew Niccol, the sequel Lords of War started production last month in Belgium. Beside Productions is in charge of producing the Belgian part of the film and securing the Belgian financing through its in-house Tax Shelter fund and Belgian regional funds.  

Directed by Andrew Niccol (director of Gattaca, screenwriter for The Truman Show, Terminal), the film stars Academy Award® winner Nicolas Cage, Bill Skarsgård (John Wick: Chapter 4) and Laura Harrier (Michael), alongside Sylvia Hoeks (Blade Runner 2049) and Greg Tarzan Davis (Mission:Impossible – The Final Reckoning, Top Gun: Maverick).  

Philippe Rousselet and Fabrice Gianfermi (CODA) who produced the original are producing under their Academy Award®-winning banner Vendôme Pictures, alongside Nicolas Cage under his company, Saturn Films. Skarsgård is executive producing. Vendôme Pictures is fully financing the film with FilmNation Entertainment representing the international sales rights and CAA Media Finance the domestic rights.

Lords of War finds YuriOrlov (Cage), the world’s most notorious arms dealer, as he discovers that he has a son, Anton (Skarsgård), who isn’t trying to right his father’s wrongs –he’s trying to top them. Not only selling guns but the “trigger pullers” too, Anton is amassing a mercenary army to fight America’s Middle East conflicts. This is the story of Yuri and Anton’s bitter rivalry – even at odds over the same woman. Who will prevail when father and son go to war? Lord of War’s Yuri Orlov is a composite character based on numerous arms dealers.

Lords of War is Beside Productions’ 93rd co-production since its inception in 2015. The Belgian locations will represent, among others, the CIA Headquarters, Washington D.C.’s Capitol Hill, Geneva and Brooklyn.  After a first phase in Belgium, the shooting will move to Morocco where Belgian crew will remain active. Beside Productions will then manage large parts ofthe post-production. 

To best serve Lords of War, Beside Productions relies on its recent experience, managing challenging shoots in Belgium. Since 2021 alone, the company has managed over 600 shooting days across 25 international feature films and series alike, mainly in Belgium, but also in other European and African countries.

Next to securing an experienced Belgian crew, Beside is bringing multi-million Tax Shelter financing to the project and has already secured support from Screen Brussels and Screen Flanders. 

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