Kate Spurgeon Set For Feature Comedy ‘Heather Of The Valley’
- Leslie
- Sep 10
- 3 min read
Client: Kate Spurgeon – Writer, Executive Producer
Michelle Buteau (Babes) and Zooey Deschanel (500 Days of Summer) have inked deals to star in Heather of the Valley, an indie comedy that award-winner Sheri Elwood (Tulsa King) will direct from an original script by Kate Spurgeon (American Dad!).
In the film, slated for a Spring 2026 production start in Scotland, Buteau plays a burned-out suburban mom who has given up on everything except sarcasm and Diet Coke, with Deschanel as an awkward force of relentless optimism. These former high school classmates have nothing in common, except their shared obsession of the hit TV show, Scotlander. A twist of fate catapults them from the San Fernando Valley back in time to a hilariously gritty, historically accurate version of 18th-century Scotland. And what should have been a romantic escape from their lives turns into a violent, foul-smelling, and dangerously real nightmare — forcing the women to survive sword fights, scheming aristocrats, and the indignities of the past armed only with modern-day sass, resourcefulness… and the occasional Britney Spears dance routine.
Elevation Pictures (French Exit, Alice, Darling) and Who’s On First (And Mrs., The Exchange) will produce, with worldwide sales handled by Upgrade. Writer Spurgeon calls the film “a story for anyone who’s lost themselves in motherhood” — one “about finding yourself again, in the most unexpected (and uncomfortable) places with a little help from your friends.” She adds that she “wanted to write something that would make women laugh until they cry—and then cry for real.”
Elwood shares, “I fell in love with Kate’s script instantly. It’s witty, audacious, a fresh, unflinching reminder that female friendships will always save the day. Michelle and Zooey are the perfect duo to bring this cinematic joyride to life—they’re both original, fearless comedians with huge hearts and a willingness to be funny on horseback. Celtic kush, time travel, hot men in kilts. Buckle up, bitches!”
Buteau is an actress and comedian known for co-creating and starring in Netflix’s Survival of the Thickest, which is heading into its third and final season. She’s also starred in Neon’s lauded pregnancy dramedy Babes opposite Ilana Glazer, BET+’s First Wives Club, and Universal’s Marry Me, and released her most recent stand-up special, Michelle Buteau: A Buteau-ful Mind at Radio City Music Hall, on Netflix last year. Most recently wrapping a role opposite Anna Faris, Isla Fisher and Leslie Mann in the comedy Spa Weekend, she’s repped by CAA and Mosaic.
Emmy- and Golden Globe-nominated for her work on the Fox sitcom New Girl, Deschanel is also known for roles in myriad films, including 500 Days of Summer and Elf. She most recently wrapped a starring role opposite Charlie Cox in the Amazon MGM rom-com Merv and is repped by CAA, Entertainment 360, and Hansen, Jacobson, Teller.
A multi-hyphenate best known for creating the TV series Moonshine and Call Me Fitz, who exec produces Paramount+’s Sylvester Stallone starrer Tulsa King, Elwood is repped by Anonymous Content and Yorn, Levine, Barnes.
Spurgeon has also previously written on Elwood’s Moonshine, as well as the shows The Last O.G. and Fuller House. She is repped by Heroes and Villains Entertainment, RBEL, and Cohen & Gardner.