‘Vintage Violence’ Boards Best Friend Forever Ahead of TIFF Midnight Madness Premiere

Cole Sprouse and Kiko Mizuhara lead Eugene Kotlyarenko’s Vintage Violence, making its world premiere at TIFF Midnight Madness. / Best Friend Forever / Variety

‘Vintage Violence’ Boards Best Friend Forever Ahead of TIFF Midnight Madness World Premiere

Eugene Kotlyarenko’s Vintage Violence, starring Cole Sprouse and Kiko Mizuhara, has secured international sales representation ahead of its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival.

Best Friend Forever has boarded international sales for the thriller, while WME is handling domestic rights. The film will make its world premiere as part of TIFF’s Midnight Madness program.

Vintage Violence marks the eighth feature from Kotlyarenko, whose previous films include Spree and The Code. The filmmaker has frequently incorporated internet culture, livestreaming and online communication into his work, with Spree premiering at Sundance in 2020 and The Code screening at Fantasia in 2024.

Sprouse and Mizuhara lead a cast that also includes Nijiro Murakami (Alice in Borderland), Pierre Taki (Like Father, Like Son) and Hio Miyazawa (Egoist).

The film follows a livestreamer who discovers a hidden collection of rare vintage denim in Colorado. After one of his subscribers offers the possibility of making a fortune from the jeans, he travels to Japan and becomes caught in a conflict involving the Yakuza.

Cinematographer Sean Price Williams, whose credits include Good Time, The Sweet East and The Moment, serves as director of photography.

“Vintage Violence was made with lots of enthusiasm and cinephilia from everyone involved, so it’s great to work with Best Friend Forever, a company brimming with both those qualities,” Kotlyarenko said. “Most importantly, we have the same goal in mind: for audiences all over the world to get rocked by this movie.”

The project reunites Kotlyarenko with producers Alex Hughes and Riccardo Maddalosso of Spacemaker Productions, who previously worked with the filmmaker on Spree and The Code. Spacemaker’s credits also include James Gray’s Armageddon Time and Sebastián Silva’s Rotting in the Sun.

Japan’s Barravento, which previously worked on Onoda: 10,000 Nights in the Jungle, and Mam Film, whose credits include Love Life, are co-producing.

Best Friend Forever co-founders Martin Gondre and Charles Bin described the project as a continuation of Kotlyarenko’s interest in contemporary digital culture while moving into new genre territory.

“Vintage Violence feels like an exciting new step – a funny, romantic and irreverent thriller, made with a freedom of style that recalls Takashi Miike,” Gondre and Bin said.

The film joins Best Friend Forever’s fall 2026 sales slate alongside fellow Toronto selection Half and Cannes Un Certain Regard Jury Prize winner Elephants in the Fog.

Vintage Violence will make its world premiere as part of TIFF’s Midnight Madness lineup, with WME representing domestic rights and Best Friend Forever handling international sales.