Jonathan Bailey to Star in Gay Romance Film ‘Insomniac City’ for ‘Elsinore’ Producer

Jonathan Bailey has booked another lead role, and is set to star alongside Bill Nighy in Dominic Cooke’s “Insomniac City.” The love story is based on the real-life romance between writer and writer and photographer Bill Hayes and celebrated neurologist Oliver Sacks. Altitude is handling worldwide sales and will introduce the project to buyers at AFM. Adapted from Hayes’s 2017 memoir, “Insomniac City” follows Hayes as he arrives in New York City from San Francisco in the wake of a devastating loss. As he begins to rebuild his life, he falls unexpectedly in love with both the city and Oliver Sacks, whose writing and groundbreaking work in neurology made him one of the most distinctive voices in modern medicine. As per the description: “Set against the restless, vibrant backdrop of New York City, ‘Insomniac City’ is an intimate and uplifting portrait of grief, hope, community and second chances, and of the remarkable possibility of finding love when it is least expected.” Bailey will play Hayes opposite Nighy as Sacks, bringing to the screen a relationship that transformed both men’s lives during Sacks’s final years. Described by The New York Times as the “poet laureate of contemporary medicine”, Sacks was celebrated for the humanity and curiosity he brought to his work. He was the author of “The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat’ and “Awakenings,” which was adapted into the Academy Award-nominated film starring Robin Williams and Robert De Niro. Co-written and adapted for the big screen by Hayes and Cooke, “Insomniac City” will be produced by Troy Lum and Andrew Mason for their UK-Australian outfit Brouhaha Entertainment, Bailey, Mike Goodridge and Gabrielle Tana (“Elsinore”). Executive Producers are Will Clarke, Andy Mason and Mike Runagall via Altitude. Bill Nighy is represented by Independent Talent in the U.K, UTA and Public Eye Communications. Jonathan Bailey is represented by CAA; Anonymous Content; and Conway Van Gelder Grant.