‘It Had To Be You’: Director Sam Hargrave Enlisted By Sony Pictures For Contract Killer Action Movie With A Romantic Angle

Coming off directing Skydance/Apple’s upcoming toy IP flick “Matchbox: The Movie” (stars John Cena) and set to reunite with Chris Hemsworth on “Extraction 3,” action genre director Sam Hargrave (a stuntman turned filmmaker) has been tapped by Sony Pictures to helm their new actioner, “It Had To Be You.”

The project announcement hailing from a report at Deadline says the new Sony film “follows two contract killers, each with a hit out on the other, must fight their growing attraction as they face off in an epic game of lust and murder across Western Europe.”

“It Had To Be You” is based on a script penned by Eliza Jane Braziera (who will also executive produce) and is an adaptation of her own novel of the same name. It remains to be seen who will be cast in the roles of Eva and Jonathan, the aforementioned contract killers at the center of the story.

READ MORE: 17 Must-See April Films: ‘The Drama,’ ‘The Christophers,’ ‘Mother Mary,’ ‘Normal’ & More

Speaking of that novel, here is the official synopsis for it via Amazon:

When Eva and Jonathan hook up on the sleeper train from Florence to Paris, they think they’ll never see each other again. Which is too bad, because neither has ever felt a spark like this for another person. But love isn’t on the agenda in their line of work. Six months later, they run into each other in the Hall of Mirrors in Versailles. This encounter is not by chance, because Eva has been hired to kill Jonathan. She’s a contract killer, but what she doesn’t know is that he is too. Their meeting kicks off a high-stakes adventure across Western Europe. There will be tourism. There will be bodies. Eva and Jonathan might even fall for each other. As the two get closer to completing their assignments, it becomes clear that they are also being hunted—by something even more dangerous than love. . . .

If you’re not aware, Hargrave cut his teeth in the world of Marvel as a stuntman, stunt coordinator, and second unit director before his feature debut with the first “Extraction” installment. Some of those other studio projects that Hargrave worked on over the years include “The Mandalorian” (second unit director), “The Accountant,” “Avengers: Infinity War,” “Avengers: Endgame,” “Deadpool 2,” “Thor: Ragnarok,” “Atomic Blonde,” “The Wolverine” (stunt double for Hugh Jackman), “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” (stunt double for Chris Evans), and “Captain America: Civil War.”

Hargrave is producing “It Had To Be You” alongside Cameron Fuller of Platinum Dunes, the production banner has been in a lucrative partnership with John Krasinski on his “A Quiet Place” franchise. So, with that in mind, we wouldn’t be all that surprised if Krasinski (who will be next seen in “Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan: Ghost War” and is directing “A Quiet Place Part III”) is approached for the Jonathan part, but this is just us speculating.

Support independent movie journalism to keep it alive. Sign up for The Playlist Newsletter. All the content you want and, oh, right, it’s free.

We’re still waiting for a first-look trailer for “Matchbox,” which is set to be released on Apple TV this October.