If three is the official number to cement a cinematic bromance, then director Denis Villeneuve and Jake Gyllenhaal are now confirmed as such. After knocking out back-to-back pictures a few years back with diabolic brain-bender “Enemy” and the intense mystery “Prisoners,” the pair are gearing up to work together again.
Villeneuve will direct and Gyllenhall will star in the adaptation of acclaimed crime novelist Jo Nesbo‘s “The Son.” The film will center on Sonny Lofthus, a once gifted 15-year-old and promising wrestler whose downward spiral ensues when his cop father commits suicide. Over twelve years, Sonny’s time in prison has been nurtured by an uninterrupted supply of heroin from a seedy chaplain on the inside. When Sonny learns long-hidden truths about his father’s unexpected death, he makes a brilliant escape and begins hunting down the people responsible for his wrongful sentence.
Sounds like terrific stuff: it’s the kind of genre material that Villeneuve regularly elevates via the approach that made “Sicario” and “Prisoners” so much more than loglines indicated. And fun fact: Channing Tatum once eyed “The Son” as his possible directorial debut.
Of course, Villeneuve’s plate is quite full presently, as he is putting the finishing touches on “Story Of Your Life” (that title will apparently be changing) starring Amy Adams, before shooting “Blade Runner 2” this summer. But the knowledge that he’s got another collaboration with Gyllenhaal renders his slate one of the most highly anticipated, at least for me, of any director at the moment.
As for Gyllenhaal, the project will be produced through his new Nine Stories shingle, founded with Riva Marker. Together they sourced “The Son,” brought it to Villeneuve, and here we are, with Bold Films taking a look at financing. Gyllenhaal keeps making one great choice after another, and this sounds like another juicy role for the committed actor to lose himself in.