Andrew Haigh’s ‘Lean on Pete’ Adds Chloë Sevigny, Travis Fimmel to Cast

Deadline reports that Chloë Sevigny (Love and Friendship) and Travis Fimmel (Maggie’s Plan) are the latest additions to Andrew Haigh’s new passion project, Lean on Pete. Haigh, who last year directed Charlotte Rampling to an Oscar nomination in 45 Years, will both helm as well as adapt the screenplay of Willy Vlautin’s 2010 novel of the same name.

The novel centers on 15 year-old Charley Thompson (Charlie Plummer) who moves with his father (Fimmel) from Spokane, WA to Portland, Oregon. Charley takes job with eccentric Del Montgomery (Steve Buscemi) at the nearby racetrack. Sevigny will play Bonnie, one of Del’s jockeys. When his home situation goes terribly awry, Charley runs away with Lean on Pete, a stolen racehorse. Together they embark on a perilous and adventure-filled journey to find Charley’s long-lost aunt and possibly a new home.

The feature will be produced by The Bureau’s Tristan Goligher and co-financed by Film4 and the British Film Institute. A24 will take care of U.S. distribution while international rights are being handled by The Bureau Sales.

Oscar-nominated actress Sevigny can currently be seen in theaters opposite Kate Beckinsale in the well-reviewed period piece Love and Friendship. She stars in the Netflix original series Bloodline and branched into directing this year, with her debut on the short film Kitty. She has several projects lined up including Universal’s detective film The Snowman starring twice-Oscar nominated actor Michael Fassbender (Steve Jobs) and Oren Moverman’s mystery-thriller The Dinner starring Rebecca Hall (The BFG) and Richard Gere (The Benefactor).

Australian-born actor Fimmel returns in his lead role on History Channel’s The Vikings later this year. He was previously seen in Rebecca Miller’s Maggie’s Plan and Duncan Jones’ international blockbuster hit Warcraft. He has signed on to star in Peter Segal’s science fiction film Inversion and in a remake of the WWI drama All Quiet on the Western Front.

Lean on Pete is currently shooting and will be released in theaters in 2017.