Break out the animal puns -- "The Beaver, Anonymous Content’s hot project about a man and his beaver puppet, is getting a whole new coat of fur. And it's not exactly what you'd expect.
Jodie Foster is in negotiations to head to the director's chair for, as well as co-star in, the whimsical drama, while Mel Gibson is in talks to play the lead role.
Some background/refresher: Kyle Killen’s “Beaver” has generated huge heat in development circles, landing the top spot on the Black List last year. The story centers on a grown man who wears a beaver puppet on his hand that he treats as a real person, and those familiar with the script have compared it to “Lars and the Real Girl” and the work of Charlie Kaufman.
“Beaver” has gone through several iterations since the latter part of 2008, with Steve Carell and Jim Carrey both circling the pic at earlier stages and Jay Roach eyeing it as a directing vehicle. Foster’s name surfaced on the short list of directors in the spring.
Given the buzz on the project, Anonymous is eager to make the movie this year; producers could shop it to a studio or finance it independently once the talent is all lined up.
It's that talent that makes for some interesting subplots. The pairin
g of Gibson and Foster would mark a reunion for the duo — they starred as a desperate poker player and his canny adversary in “Maverick” more than 15 years ago.It would also take the two back to earlier stages of their careers. Foster, repped by ICM, has made two previous forays into directing, but both more than a decade ago: the 1995 family drama “Home for the Holidays” and the 1991 single-mother tale “Little Man Tate.”
“Beaver” would also spell just the second acting role since 2003 for the WME-repped Gibson (he's also starring in Warners’ 2010 conspiracy thriller “Edge of Darknes"). As with “Darkness,” “Beaver” would test Gibson's boxoffice drawing power after the 2006 DUI-related controversy, which he since apologized for.
Foster, who is also attached to direct the period circus tale “Flora Plum” at Paramount, last starred in Fox and Walden’s family adventure “Nim’s Island" in 2008. We have a feeling "Beaver" is just a slightly different kind of pic.
No comments:
Post a Comment