The Upside

The Upside is a 2017 American comedy-drama film directed by Neil Burger and written by Jon Hartmere. It is a remake of the French 2011 film The Intouchables which was itself inspired by the life of Philippe Pozzo di Borgo. The film follows a paralyzed billionaire (Bryan Cranston) who strikes up an unlikely friendship with a recently paroled convict (Kevin Hart). Nicole Kidman, Julianna Margulies and Aja Naomi King also star. Filming began in Philadelphia in January 2017.

The film premiered at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival. It is scheduled to be released on January 11, 2019, by STX Entertainment and Lantern Entertainment.

Plot
A comedic look at the relationship between a wealthy quadriplegic and an unemployed man with a criminal record who's hired to help him.

Cast

 * Bryan Cranston as Phillip Lacasse
 * Kevin Hart as Dell Scott
 * Nicole Kidman as Yvonne
 * Genevieve Angelson as Jenny
 * Aja Naomi King as Latrice
 * Julianna Margulies as Lily
 * Rachel Alana Handler as Proctor
 * Tate Donovan as Carter Locke
 * Mac Brandt
 * Amara Karan
 * Omi Vaidya
 * Golshifteh Farahani as Dr. Gupta
 * Jahi Di'Allo Winston as Anthony
 * Michael Quinlan as Jack

Development
In July 2011, in addition to acquiring distribution rights in English-speaking countries, Scandinavian countries and China, The Weinstein Company acquired the rights to remake The Intouchables in English. In June 2012, Paul Feig was slated to direct and write the script, with Chris Rock, Jamie Foxx and Idris Elba eyed for the role of Dell, Colin Firth in talks for Phillip, and Jessica Chastain and Michelle Williams were considered for a female lead.

By March 2013, Feig dropped out of directing, with Tom Shadyac in talks to replace him, and Chris Tucker was in consideration for Dell. In October 2014, Kevin Hart was cast as Dell, with Firth still attached as Phillip.

In March 2016, it was announced that Bryan Cranston was cast as Phillip, replacing Firth. Simon Curtis was to direct Cranston and Hart from a screenplay written by Feig. By August 2016, Curtis dropped out of directing. Neil Burger was announced as his replacement. A script by Jon Hartmere will be used rather than Feig's work.

In January 2017, Nicole Kidman and Genevieve Angelson joined the cast of the film. In February 2017, Aja Naomi King and Julianna Margulies joined the cast.

On August 2, 2017, the film's title was changed to The Upside.

Filming
Principal photography began on January 27, 2017 in Philadelphia. An official photo was released on January 30, 2017 of Hart's character via his Instagram account.

Release
The film had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 9, 2017. It was initially scheduled to be released in the United States on March 9, 2018. However in January 2018, following the Weinstein scandal, the film was pulled from the schedule by The Weinstein Company and moved to an unspecified 2018 date. In August 2018, it was announced STX Entertainment would be partnering with the renamed studio, Lantern Entertainment to distribute the film. It is scheduled to be released on January 11, 2019.

Critical response
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 55% based on 11 reviews, with an average rating of 6.2/10. On Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, the film has a score of 56 out of 100, based on 5 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".