The deal is made while parent company Paramount Global agree to be acquired by a consortium led by Skydance. That deal will take about a year to complete, including clearing regulatory hurdles.

Possession is personal for Paramount CEO Brian Robbins and motion picture co-heads Daria Cercek and Michael Ireland, who fought hard to keep Finn in the Paramount family. He’s a homegrown talent, with Smile becoming a surprise hit at Paramount in 2022.

Finn will write the script, direct and produce via his Bad Feeling banner.

Pattinson will produce via his production company Icki Eneo Arlo. His acting involvement will be clarified down the road as the script and schedules develop.

Vertigo Entertainment’s Roy Lee, who helped produce Zach Cregger’s breakout Barbarian, will also produce, as will Pattinson’s Icki Eneo Arlo partner Brighton McCloskey.

The package hit the town in mid-June, quickly eliciting a bidding war. According to sources, theatrical players Warner Bros., Sony, and Paramount were the final bidders.

The movie was Zulawski’s meditation on marriage, written as a reaction to his own crumbling relationship. An international co-production between France and Germany, the movie was not a hit nor particularly well-received when it was released. But it gained a cult status for the filmmaker’s commitment to the premise after a reappraisal.

The deal marks a leveling up for Finn, who is in post on Smile 2 for Paramount and has a first-look deal with the studio. Possession was not part of the first-look, but the studio has seen Smile 2 and feels tremendously high on it.