Award-winning studio LAIKA is bolstering its Live Action slate by acquiring Crumble, an original script by Brian Duffield (Spontaneous, No One Will Save You), who will direct. Oscar® winners Phil Lord and Chris Miller as well as Aditya Sood will produce through their Lord Miller banner. Duffield will also produce.  Lucy Kitada and Nikki Baida from Lord Miller will serve as executive producers. 
 
Crumble tells the tale of a married couple who go on a world-traversing adventure in the hope of finding a cure to an ancient curse.
 
LAIKA’s President, Live Action Film & Series Matt Levin made the announcement today.
 
“We’re so excited to partner with Brian and the entire team at Lord Miller on this special film,” said Levin.  “Brian has such a singular voice and Crumble perfectly embodies the bold, emotional, and inventive storytelling that we champion at LAIKA. Lord Miller is in a class of its own and we could not ask for a better creative team to bring this story to life.”
 
Brian Duffield is one of today’s most sought-after writer/producer/directors, mashing up genres and pushing the creative envelope. His critically acclaimed film No One Will Save You starring Kaitlyn Dever was released on Hulu in September 2023, earning him a Critics Choice nomination for Best Movie Made for Television, as well as a WGA Award nomination in the TV & New Media Motion Picture category. Prior to that, he wrote, produced and directed Spontaneous, produced Cocaine Bear, directed by Elizabeth Banks for Universal, as well as the upcoming Borderline, directed by Jimmy Warden and starring Samara Weaving.  He will also co-write, direct, and produce Whalefall for 20th Century Studios and Imagine Entertainment, based on the recently published novel by Daniel Kraus.
 
“I’ll never forget seeing Coraline on opening night at the AMC Burbank 16 and wondering who these wonderful new geniuses were,” said Duffield. “I can’t wait to make a movie with them and hopefully live up to their banner, and I couldn’t be more excited to get to go on a new adventure with my friends at Lord Miller.”
 
“We’re so excited to keep collaborating with our friend Brian Duffield who has written a script that is endlessly imaginative, funny and romantic,” said Chris Miller and Phil Lord.  “We have long been fans of LAIKA and Travis Knight’s groundbreaking work in animation and could not be more excited to join forces with them in live action.”
 
Brian Duffield is represented by UTA, Circle of Confusion, and Behr Abramson Levy Johnson.  Lord and Miller are represented by UTA and Ziffren Brittenham.