Apple just made the biggest deal of Sundance 2022, buying Cooper Raiff’s “Cha Cha Cha Real Smooth” for a whopping $15 million. I fell for Raiff’s sweetly romantic film when I saw it on Monday.
The ‘Cha Cha Cha’ deal surpasses “Good Luck, Leo Grande,”which had been, up to this point, the biggest purchase of this year’s fest, having been bought by Searchlight Pictures for $7.5 million.
If you remember, Apple also conducted the biggest deal of Sundance 2021 with the $25 million spent out for, now, Oscar contender “CODA.” I don’t see any film surpassing that total this year, let alone what was dished out for ‘Cha Cha Cha.’
This has been a very weak year for Sundance films, with barely any films sparking intense buzz. The festival has already premiered all of its films and is now screening their entire lineup of all over again for the next few days.
The awards winners will be announced on Saturday evening. “Cha Cha Cha Real Smooth” is the current frontrunner to win both the US Dramatic Prize and the Audience Award.