It’s not often, in fact it’s pretty rare, for a foreign filmmaker making decidedly weird arthouse movies to attract A-list casts to make his movies, but Yorgos Lanthimos is the exception. After wowing cinephiles with "Dogtooth" and "Alps," the filmmaker managed to score Colin Farrell, Rachel Weisz, Lea Seydoux, Ben Whishaw, John C. Reilly, and more for his no less oddball "The Lobster." And quick to strike while the iron is hot, the director is gearing up his next movie and has more big names attached, but for something that sounds quite conventional.
Emma Stone, Kate Winslet, and Olivia Colman are all in talks to join "The Favorite." This is not a movie spawned from the brain of Lanthimos, but is instead a gig he was offered, a period drama penned by Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara. The 17th century set story will find Colman all dressed up as Queen Anne, with Winslet as Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough, and Stone as Sarah’s distant relative Abigail, with the tale detailing the various political machinations of royalty. It sounds pretty…ordinary. Maybe someone will turn into an animal?
Financing is being put together, but I won’t imagine it’ll be hard to come by with this cast. Can Lanthimos score with something geared for more mainstream audiences? Guess we’ll see. [Deadline]