Natasha Lyonne to Write and Direct Upcoming Film ‘Bambo’ (Exclusive)

Natasha Lyonne has filmed her next feature film. The old Impassive face the star will write and direct Fatherwhich is set in the 1980s and follows a Brooklyn-born boxing promoter father as he tries and fails to become the next Don King, and “takes his little girl with him into the whirlwind of tax evasion, cocaine, race cars, lost dreams and heartbreak.”

Lyonne produces through her Animal Pictures banner with Max Ferguson alongside Craig Mazin for Word Games and Sarah Sarandos. Principal photography is expected to begin in summer 2026.

Father is the second feature film from Lyon. Earlier this year, Lyonne announced that she would be making her directorial debut with the film AI Uncanny Valley. Produced by Asteria Film Co., the hybrid AI studio co-founded by Lyonne, Uncanny Valley will take place in the world of immersive video games and blend live-action and gaming elements while focusing on a teenage girl who finds herself unmoored by a hugely popular AR video game in a parallel present. Lyonne and Brit Marling team up as co-writers on the feature film along with Jaron Lanier.

Lyonne’s film slate follows the more recent announcement that she will no longer star in Impassive face. Peacock surprise canceled the Lyonne-led murder-of-the-week series after two seasons, but creator Rian Johnson shopped the series with Game of Thrones Star Peter Dinklage as the new lead actor, replacing Lyonne as Detective Charlie Cale. Casey Bloys, chairman and CEO of HBO and HBO Max, said his network was “curious” about potential savings Impassive face after the cancellation, but had nothing official to report.

Lyonne recently co-founded the Creators Coalition on AI (CCAI). Eighteen industry players, including Lyonne, have come together to launch the first-of-its-kind company led by Daniel Kwan and Jonathan Wang, which hopes to serve as a central coordinating hub to improve industry systems and institutions on the impact of AI across all industries.

Lyonne was nominated for a 2026 Critics Choice Award and a Golden Globe Award for her starring role in Impassive face. She co-created the three-time Emmy Award-winning Netflix series Russian Dollon which she starred, wrote, produced, presented and directed. She also starred in Netflix’s Emmy Award-winning series Orange is the new black for seven years. She will also star in the upcoming third season of Euphoria; details of his role have not yet been revealed.

His upcoming projects also include co-creating and co-starring in Sky’s retro comedy. Force and Major alongside Matt Berry; featured in Taika Waititi’s adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro Klara and the sun; starring and producing the film adaptation of Ana Lily Amirpour A basket full of heads; and starring in the Netflix comedy Roommatesproduced by Happy Madison Productions. Lyonne also has a story credit alongside Joe and Kieran Fitzgerald and a producing credit on the upcoming Joseph Gordon-Levitt-directed AI thriller for Netflix from T-Street Productions.

Lyonne is repped by Untitled Entertainment and CAA, as well as attorneys James Adams and Scott Winston.

Word Games, founded by Mazin, has an exclusive television development deal with HBO and has produced hit series Chernobyl And The last of us.