Editor

Christopher Backus (HBO’s “Big Little Lies”, Netflix’s “Mindhunter”, Apple TV+’s “Truth be Told”) and Skye P. Marshall (Netflix’s “The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina”, NBC’s “This is Us”), are set to star in Chad Bishoff’s highly anticipated psychological-thriller Daft State. Principal photography on the feature, written by Bishoff and Sam Harter, is set to commence on location in Omaha, Nebraska on August 9, 2021.

Executive producers of the suspense mystery include industry heavyweights Inny Clemons whose credits include Straight Outta Compton, Next Day Air, Netflix’s Sneakerheads, and the recently wrapped production of the Mo McRae directed dark comedy thriller A Lot of Nothing, executive produced by David Oyelowo and Anonymous Content.  Daft State executive producers also include Lisa Crnic (Paramount’s Clifford the Big Red Dog), Brett Cullen (Joker, The Dark Knight Rises, HBO’s “True Detective”), and Jonas Roeser (It Snows All the Time).

The Syncretic Entertainment production is produced by Erich Hover and frequent collaborator Bishoff; their previous projects include Lionsgate’s The Turkey Bowl, the South x Southwest official selection M.F.A., and the upcoming It Snows All the Time starring Cullen and Taryn Manning. Hover is also a part of the production team, with Clemons, on A Lot of Nothing.

This relentlessly gripping thriller, molded in the vein of classic Hitchcockian suspense masterworks, charts the mysterious psychological destruction of central character Easton (Backus), who is driven to the edge of sanity, and possible self-harm, by those that love him most – his wife (Marshall) and daughter. Will Easton succumb to their increasingly traumatizing pressure, or will he conquer the dark forces at play in his addled psyche? 

Bishoff commented, “I’ve always been inspired by great psychological thrillers. Mental health is also a central figure in our film, and with everything that’s happening in the world right now, we have to shed light on this important topic. I’m grateful for our creative team and our amazing actors who will bring this story to life. It’s so important.”

Industry favorite for playing hard hitting roles, Backus’ credits include HBO’s Emmy Award-winning limited series “Big Little Lies”, Netflix’s highly lauded series “Mindhunter”, the apocalyptic thriller “Blackout” opposite Academy Award® winner Rami Malek, Apple TV+’s “Truth Be Told” opposite Academy Award® winner Octavia Spencer and Showtime’s “Roadies” from creator Cameron Crowe. Other credits include two of FX’s most decorated series “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” and “Sons of Anarchy”. He was nominated for Best Actor at the Madrid International Film Festival for his role in “Domino Falling” and at the Seattle Film Festival for his role in “Three Days Gone: Based on the Life of Lucas Snow.”

In early 2022, Marshall will be starring as a series regular on CBS's newest medical drama, "Good Sam", alongside Sophia Bush and Jason Isaacs. She is well known to audiences for her portrayal of powerful Haitian Voodoo Priestess, Mambo Marie on Netflix's, "The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina" alongside Miranda Otto and Kiernan Shipka; and for playing Ms. Fowdy for two seasons on The CW/DC's superhero series "Black Lightning". Some of her other guest star/recurring credits include: “This Is Us”, “9-1-1”, "NCIS", "The Rookie", “Grey’s Anatomy”, “Shameless”, and “The Fix”. In features, Marshall’s recent work includes: Lionsgate’s Misconduct opposite Anthony Hopkins and Al Pacino, the rom-com, A Nice Girl Like You with Lucy Hale, and the upcoming dark comedy thriller A Lot of Nothing from director Mo McRae.

Christopher Backus is repped by Kris Heller at APA and Colton Gramm at Brillstein Entertainment Partners. Marshall is repped by Affirmative Entertainment and Meyer & Downs.