A film with close Arkansas connections has snagged a nomination for a Critics Choice Documentary Award.
You Cannot Kill David Arquette was nominated in the ‘Best Sports Documentary’ category by the Critics Choice Association. This 2020 documentary chronicles Scream star David Arquette’s efforts to return to the world of wrestling.
The film was produced by Arkansas native Christina McLarty Arquette, who is David Arquette’s wife, as well as Franklin McLarty, the co-founder and co-chairman of the Southern United Automotive Group, and his wife Gabby McLarty. (Christina McLarty Arquette and Franklin McLarty are cousins.)
According to her IMDb page, You Cannot Kill David Arquette is one of two films Christina McLarty Arquette has produced in 2020, with the second being 12 Hour Shift. She previously produced the documentary Survivors Guide to Prison in 2018 and a documentary short entitled Valerie in 2019. She also is a producer on the film Ghosts of the Ozarks, which stars David Arquette, and is listed as being in post-production.
Franklin McLarty has one other producer credit listed on IMDb. He is listed as a producer on Warrior Champions, a documentary by Arkansas filmmakers Brent and Craig Renaud.
“You Cannot Kill David Arquette,” which was directed by Price James and David Darg and distributed by Super LTD, will be competing against six other films in the ‘Best Sports Documentary’ category. Two of the films – Athlete A and Rising Phoenix – were released by Netflix, ESPN released the film Be Water and HBO released Ali & Cavett: The Tale of the Tapes. The films A Most Beautiful Thing and Red Penguins were distributed by 50 Eggs Films and Universal Pictures, respectively.
“At a unique time for the entertainment industry and the world, documentaries are more important and fortunately more abundant and more available and more essential than ever,” Christopher Campbell, president of the Critics Choice Association Documentary Branch, said in a statement. “In 2020, documentaries have taken us to places and shown us perspectives we’ve never experienced before. They’ve chronicled events and life stories that are enlightening and enthralling – and sometimes frightening. It is a great honor for the CCA to celebrate these stories and subjects and shed light on the work of so many incredible filmmakers. The Documentary Branch faced its greatest task yet considering the quantity and quality of nonfiction cinema released this year. Ultimately, these nominees represent the best of the best of a remarkably fruitful moment for documentary filmmaking.”
Eligibility for the awards runs from Nov. 1, 2019 to Dec. 31, 2020. Any documentary films or non-series television shows that premiered or are scheduled to premiere during this time were eligible to be nominated for awards.
Final ballots for the nominated films will go out to Critics Choice Association members on Sunday, Nov. 8, and the final balloting will conclude on Monday, Nov. 9.
The winners of the fifth annual Critics Choice Documentary Awards will be revealed on Nov. 16.
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