‘The Night Manager’ Star David Avery Joins ‘Dreaming Whilst Black’ Director’s Indie For Film & TV Push

EXCLUSIVE: The Night Manager star David Avery has joined the indie run by the director of buzzy BBC hit Dreaming Whilst Black to aid with a film and TV push.

David Avery joined Bluebird Pictures last year in an official capacity, having produced the company’s 2020 short Greasy Spoon.

Avery, who played Freddie Hamid in The Night Manager and has also starred in Starred Up, Gangs of London and Hanna, is helping with a fresh development slate as the company pivots focus to film and TV.

Bluebird was launched in 2017 by Dreaming director Joelle David but has in the main focused on running the World Cinema Festival. This festival has been placed on hiatus this year as David and Avery focus on their slate.

The slate, Bluebird’s first, features a dark comedy about motherhood and a comedy-thriller about how different cultures deal with death. Bluebird is also working with talent it has connected with during the running of the festival such as director Candice Onyeama, who it is trying to land a project with alongside scribe Daniel Ruseau.

David directed episodes of BBC hit Dreaming Whilst Black, which was picked up in the U.S. by Showtime, and is also working on upcoming Channel 4/Hulu show Queenie, adapted from the Candice Carty-Williams novel.

“Like Dreaming Whilst Black, we believe all stories need some levity, even when the subject matters can be tough,” David told Deadline. “We want to tell stories from unique perspectives and champion the weird and wonderful in life.”

Running a film festival was never the “final aim,” David added, but she wanted to “get to a position where we could produce our own stories across TV and film.”