Academy Award(R) Winning Composer A.R. Rahman to Score 'Couples Retreat' for Universal Pictures

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UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif., June 5 /PRNewswire/ -- It was announced today that Oscar(R)-winning composer and internationally renowned musician A.R. Rahman will compose the score to the Universal Pictures' upcoming comedy Couples Retreat. Today's announcement marks Rahman's first foray into composing music for an American comedy feature film.

A.R. Rahman captured the international spotlight after winning two Academy Awards(R) for 'Best Original Score' for his work on Slumdog Millionaire and 'Best Original Song' for "Jai Ho" (Music by Rahman, Lyrics by Gulzar). Rahman also became the first Indian artist to win a Golden Globe for Best Original Score and took home numerous awards including the Critics Choice Award, Los Angeles Film Critics Award and a BAFTA for Slumdog Millionaire. Rahman's score and soundtrack received critical praise from publications including Rolling Stone, TIME Magazine, The New York Times and The Los Angeles Times .

A true artist who has redefined contemporary Indian music, A.R. Rahman is an icon in the world of cinematic scoring. He has been hailed by TIME Magazine as the "Mozart of Madras" and was included in 2009's TIME 100, which profiles the world's most influential people, as well as Fast Company's 100 Most Creative People in Business. He has also earned the designation of being one of the world's top 25 all-time selling recording artists with sales of 100 million albums worldwide.

Couples Retreat is directed by Peter Billingsley and stars Vince Vaughn, Jason Bateman, Jon Favreau, Malin Akerman, Kristin Davis, Kristen Bell and Faizon Love. Based on an original idea of Vaughn's, the comedy follows four Midwestern couples who embark on a journey to a tropical island resort. While one of the couples is there to work on their marriage, the other three set out to jet ski, spa and enjoy some fun in the sun. They soon discover that participation in the resort's couples therapy is not optional. Suddenly, their group-rate vacation comes at a price. What follows is a hilarious look at real world problems faced by all couples. The film also stars Kali Hawk and Jean Reno.

Vaughn is producing for his Wild West Picture Show Productions alongside Scott Stuber for Stuber Productions.

Upcoming Stuber Productions films to be released by Universal in 2009 are The Wolfman, directed by Joe Johnston and starring Benicio Del Toro, Emily Blunt and Anthony Hopkins and Love Happens, directed by Brandon Camp and starring Jennifer Aniston, Aaron Eckhart and Martin Sheen.

About Universal Pictures

Universal Pictures is a division of Universal Studios ( www.universalstudios.com). Universal Studios is part of NBC Universal, one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies in the development, production and marketing of entertainment, news and information to a global audience. Formed in May 2004 through the combining of NBC and Vivendi Universal Entertainment, NBC Universal owns and operates a valuable portfolio of news and entertainment networks, a premier motion picture company, significant television production operations, a leading television stations group and world-renowned theme parks. NBC Universal is 80% owned by General Electric, with 20% controlled by Vivendi.

SOURCE Universal Pictures

2009-06-05 14:32:00