Certainly, Hollywood sat up and took notice of Gerardo Naranjo when he dropped into Cannes in 2011 with the gritty thriller "Miss Bala," and promptly blew some minds. Since then, he's lined up a number of projects, including the romantic drama "The Mountain Between Us" with Michael Fassbender and the political thriller "A Man Must Die." But it looks like before he gets to either of those, he's going to take a quick detour into TV first, and work with another international star in the process.
Diane Kruger has taken the lead role in the FX series "The Bridge," which has none other than Naranjo directing the pilot. A remake of the Scandinavian series "Bron/Broen," the story will focus on El Paso Police Homicide Detective Sonya North (Kruger) and Marco Ruiz, from Mexico, who break down the border to catch a serial killer that's on the loose. Sounds like it has a lot of potential to capture a truly unique setting and atmosphere on the border landscape, and Naranjo actually seems like a great fit for the material through and through. Production is slated to begin this fall (so what does that mean for the Terrence Malick-produced, Lincoln film "Green Blade Rises"?) but if you can't wait for more Kruger, she's got another movie coming. Though we'll have to advise you to proceed with caution.
A trailer has dropped for "Special Forces," a movie she's in with Djimon Hounsou, and it seems like something they would both rather forget. Directed by Stéphane Rybojad, Kruger plays a French journalist who is kidnapped by the Taliban, with Hounsou leading the elite unit sent to bring her back. The movie got dreadful reviews when it opened in France earlier this year, and it's hard not see why. Not even the careful editing of the trailer can hide a low budget, clunky tone and rather rote approach to the complex war on terror. In case you care, it opens on October 12th, but you might be better off waiting for your Kruger fix next spring, when she features in the potential franchise beginning "The Host" opposite Saoirse Ronan on March 29th. [Deadline]
