Kath and Kim movie confirmed

Cult Australian sitcom Kath & Kim is to be made into a movie, after securing a funding deal.

The production – titled The Kath and Kim Filum – has received financial baking from Screen Australia, which called the movie ‘iconic Australian comedy’.

Little is known about the plot, other than the fact that Jane Turner and Gina Riley’s suburban Melbournite characters will head overseas on a trip that becomes ‘a vajazzling tale of love, lust and revolution’.

Announcing the deal today, Ruth Harley, chief executive of the government-funded Screen Australia said: ‘Australia's comedic sensibility is world renowned and is a distinctive part of our cultural identity. The Kath & Kim Filum represents iconic Australian comedy

It will be directed by Ted Emery and produced by Riley's husband Rick McKenna, with both of whom worked on the TV series. Turner and Riley will write and co-produce

Kath & Kim ran on Australian TV from 2002 to in 2007, including a 90-minute TV movie in 2005. It has been shown on BBC Two and digital channels in the UK, but a 2008 American remake starring Molly Shannon and Selma Blair was a flop.

Screen Australia will also be backing three other films, one low-budget TV series and ten documentaries as part of the £5.6million package of investments announced today.

Published: 8 Mar 2011