Director Vanessa Parise (Kiss the Bride) has sent Freddie Prinze Jr. and Taryn Manning home, ending their 18-day stay in Toronto for Jack and Jill vs. The World.

The romantic comedy has Prinze as a cynical adman who falls for a carefree young woman. It is produced by Parise’s Empera Pictures in L.A. with an assist from Toronto’s Darius Films (The Life and Hard Times of Guy Terrifico). Roger Spottiswoode also produces.

Nicholas Tabarrok of Darius says he signed on to help close the picture’s financing at the behest of actor-turned-writer Peter Stebbings (Jeremiah, The Limb Salesman), who cowrote Jack and Jill with Parise.

‘Vanessa did a fantastic job raising the money, but then she just wanted to concentrate on directing,’ says Tabarrok.

The project is due through Myriad Pictures and ICM next year. Tabarrok and Stebbings have also teamed to develop the drama Defender, about a mentally handicapped man who believes he is a superhero.