Carice van Houten and Halina Reijn are no longer running the production company Man Up together. Both actresses say they have discovered their own voice. They emphasize Instagram This does not mean the end of their friendship.

“We are extremely grateful and proud of what we have achieved with our company,” Van Houten and Ryan wrote in a joint statement. “Gradually, two different paths emerged and we each discovered our own unique voice. We now want to give each other the space to continue shaping that individual identity.”

In practical terms, this means that Reijn will only continue with Man Up and Van Houten will focus on her new company Birdcat. Van Houten also wants to focus her company on real-life work.

There is no argument between the two. “We see this as a deepening of our friendship and an opportunity to continue working together as makers based on our individual strengths in the future,” the two actresses wrote. “We love each other very much and remain deeply connected as people and creatives.” The two will continue their joint podcast Karis and Helena.

A few years ago, Ryan and Van Houten founded Man Up Film. Instinct, directed by Reijn and starring Van Houten, was the company’s first film. Later there was also a TV series for the Belgian VTM. The two actresses said they wanted to “tell stories about freedom from a female perspective.”