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Venus And Serena Williams Team With Alexandra Milchan To Develop ‘En Garde’; Directors Bush Renz To Helm Adaptation Of Jewell Parker Rhodes Bestseller

L to R: Serena Williams, Venus Williams, ‘Black Brother, Black Brother’ By Jewell Parker Rhodes, Alexandra Milchan

Tennis legends Venus and Serena Williams are joining forces with Tár producer Alexandra Milchan to develop a new feature film called "En Garde". The film, to be adapted from the New York Times bestselling book "Black Brother, Black Brother" by Jewell Parker Rhodes, tells the story of two bi-racial brothers who attend an elite Connecticut prep high school and must navigate its unforgiving social constructs and institutions. When the darker-skinned brother's future is threatened by his arch-nemesis, he seeks the help of an Olympic fencing champion to beat him at his own game. The film will be directed by Gerard Bush and Christopher Renz, collectively known as Bush Renz, who made their directorial debut with the 2020 horror-thriller "Antebellum" and were named to Out100's list of the Most Influential LGBTQ+ People in America.

Venus Williams, who is also an entrepreneur active in the fashion, design, wellness, and entertainment industries, will serve as a producer alongside her sister Serena Williams for 926 Productions. Milchan will produce the film for Emjag Productions, along with Isha Price, and Lara Shriftman, while Martin Salgo will co-produce for Emjag. Milchan's recent productions include writer-director Todd Field's acclaimed drama "Tár" and the Apple TV+ crime drama "Black Bird".

Venus Williams served as an executive producer on "King Richard", a Warner Bros drama based on her and Serena's life stories, while Serena Williams recently launched her own multimedia production company called 926 Productions. The sisters have won a total of 30 Grand Slam singles titles and four Olympic gold medals between them.

The film adaptation of "Black Brother, Black Brother" will be the latest addition to Bush Renz's growing filmography, and with Milchan's impressive portfolio, it's sure to be a hit. The film is expected to shed light on the ongoing issues of racial inequality and social injustice, and we can't wait to see how the Williams sisters and Bush Renz will bring this compelling story to life on the big screen.