Asghar Farhadi’s ‘Everybody Knows’ With Penelope Cruz & Javier Bardem Starts Filming, Synopsis Revealed

Asghar Farhadi took home an Oscar this year for “The Salesman” without stepping a foot inside the Dolby Theater. His refusal to attend the ceremonies due to the President’s proposed Muslim ban spoke volumes, but now he’s putting politics aside, and to work on his next film.

So far we’ve known that Penelope Cruz, Javier Bardem, and Ricardo Darin are starring in picture, with Pedro Almodovar regulars composer Alberto Iglesias (who has scored nearly a dozen Almodovar films) and cinematographer Jose Luis Alcaine (“Volver,” “The Skin I Live In,” and other Almodovar movies lending their talents. Well, now that cameras are rolling there are even more details emerging.

Firstly, the movie now has a title — “Everybody Knows” — and a supporting cast including Bárbara Lennie, Eduard Fernández, Elvira Minguez, Ramón Barea, Carla Campra and Inma Cuesta. There’s even an official synopsis:

Carolina travels with her family from Buenos Aires to her native village in Spain for a celebration. What was meant to be a short visit is disrupted by unforeseen events that will completely change their lives.

It was previously revealed that the film is a thriller, that also involves the kidnapping of a young girl (that would certainly fall into the category of “unforeseen events”), but that isn’t confirmed.

Needless to say, we’re eager to see this one, as it seems Farhadi is moving in a new direction. There’s no word on a release date, but you can pretty much bet everyone involved wants “Everybody Knows” ready for Cannes next year, where Farhadi is a welcome presence. And I’d assume U.S. distributors will be jockeying for the rights for what I’d assume will be another awards contender. [Cineuropa]