Deadline reports that Kevin Costner (Yellowstone, Man of Steel) and Morgan Freeman’s (The Shawshank Redemption, Now You See Me) Civil War spy series The Gray House has received an interim agreement from SAG-AFTRA. The producers have agreed to the terms of the guild’s last counter-offer to the AMPTP, according to Deadline, despite international distribution through Paramount Global.
Costner and Freeman produce The Gray House, which currently has no U.S. network or streamer attached. Paramount Global Content Distribution will distribute the series.
The series tells the story of the three women that were credited by General Ulysses S. Grant for helping the North win the Civil War. It follows the first successful female spy ring, which was created by a formerly enslaved African-American, a courtesan, and a Richmond Socialite and her daughter, who operated right under the noses of the Confederate High Command. They risked their lives and liberty to help preserve American Democracy and help win the war.
The Gray House is based on an original script by John Sayles (Eight Men Out, Lone Star), Darrell Fetty (The Maddening, Big Wednesday), and Leslie Greif (Funny Money, Keys to Tulsa). It is directed by Roland Joffe (The Mission, There Be Dragons).
Freeman is producing with his producing partner Lori McCreary (Invictus, The Contract) through Revelations Entertainment. Costner is executive producing with Howard Kaplan (Anon, Odd Thomas) and Rod Lake (The Highwaymen, 11:55) through Costner’s Territory Pictures banner. Greif is producing along with Alex Kerr (Inception, Tenet) through Greif’s Big Dreams Entertainment.
It is a complicated question of which project gets interim agreements, especially because some are tied to AMPTP companies.
Duncan Crabtree-Ireland (Honey Do List, Family Restaurant), SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director and Chief Negotiator, told Deadline, “It goes to reflect the complexity and the business relationships and structures in this industry.” He continued, “If there are AMPTP connections to the project, then [waivers] won’t be [granted]. That’s the big-picture answer. Everyone needs to be investigated and evaluated individually because obviously the question of ‘Are there AMPTP fingerprints or connections to the project?’ is a very specific question. That means it takes a few days to a week depending on volume, maybe a little more for us to evaluate whether a project can receive an interim agreement.”