Sure, it was widely speculated and rumored for days, but now that it’s official, the idea of Tilda Swinton starring in the upcoming French musical from Wes Anderson is just such an incredible idea.
French outlet Charente Libre is reporting that Oscar-winning actress (and semi-regular Wes Anderson-ian) Swinton is the first actor to officially be cast in the upcoming film that beings production shortly in France. The untitled film is being described as a musical set in post-World War II France, and is rumored to feature songs by Mark Mothersbaugh.
READ MORE: Bill Murray, Adrien Brody & More Usual Suspects Rumored For Wes Anderson’s French Musical
Interestingly enough, the report doesn’t stop with just Swinton. We recently reported that the musical would probably feature the “usual suspects” that Anderson brings along with many of his productions, including Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody, and, of course, Bill Murray. However, the report states that Anderson is rumored to be looking at relative newcomers to his filmography, Brad Pitt and Natalie Portman.
While those two actors are just rumored at this point, as is another name that keeps popping up, Lea Seydoux, we must remember that Pitt and Anderson do have a bit of a history together. A decade ago, Anderson directed the actor in a SoftBank commercial (watch below) that took its inspiration from the French comedy “Mr. Hulot’s Holiday” from director Jaques Tati. Since then, it’s been widely known that Pitt and Anderson have been looking for the right project to re-team on. Plus, who wouldn’t want to see Pitt take a stab at a musical?
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Portman, on the other hand, does have more than just commercial experience with Anderson. She has starred in both “The Darjeeling Limited” and its short-film prologue “Hotel Chevalier,” which are written and directed by the filmmaker. If Portman signs up for this French musical, it’ll be her second recent film with a strong musical element, coming on the heels of her most recent awards contender film “Vox Lux,” which has the Oscar-winning actress playing a pop star.
Again, no word on a title for the film, but production is set to begin later this year and go into early 2019. So, we should be getting more casting confirmations soon enough.