Succession‘s Brian Cox to Make Feature Film Directorial Debut With Family Drama Glenrothan

Succession star and general screen luminary Brian Cox is set to make his directorial debut in a film titled Glenrothan, a story described as a “love letter” to Cox’s native Scotland, while also containing some heavy Succession vibes as well.

Glenrothan is a family drama set in a “thriving distillery town” in the Scottish Highlands, also named Glenrothan—this seems to be a composite name that includes the “Glen” of many distilleries, such as Glenlivet and The Glenrothes, along with the “an” sound ending of what has been described as Cox’s favorite whisky, Lagavulin. According to Deadline, “the film will tell the story of two estranged brothers reuniting in the land of their birth. The last time they spoke was on the day of their mother’s funeral when, following a violent exchange with their father, the younger of the two left their Highland home for America. Forty years later the brothers finally re-unite, back on Scottish soil and in the village that houses the family business – the Glenrothan Distillery.”

The project was created by Scottish actor and writer David Ashton and was co-written with Jeff Murphy, and is currently in development with Lionsgate and Nevision. No casting has currently been announced, but it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Cox playing the family patriarch once again. This is of course the role he bitterly plays on Succession, as the leader of the Roy family and its company Waystar RoyCo. It’s easy to see how Glenrothan and its battling Scottish brothers could conjure up many of the same themes as they ultimately decide the fate of the family business, likely over many glasses of malt whisky.

Considering Cox’s passion for whisky, and the fact that he once did a series for Esquire demonstrating the pronunciation of nearly 50 distilleries and whisky brands, we can’t help but look forward to such a uniquely Scottish project.