“I wrote myself a helluva role, one that people wouldn’t necessarily thought of me for,” Joseph Gordon-Levitt told Deadline. And we gotta say, he's kinda right on this one.
The site reports that JGL has written, will star and direct an upcoming (and untitled) rom-com that will co-star Scarlett Johansson. And before you think it's another aw shucks nice guy routine from the actor, guess again. In the film he plays a modern day sort of Don Juan who goes on a journey to become less of a "selfish dick." There's no word yet on what part ScarJo will play but perhaps there is a love triangle of some kind? The actor says there is another major lead female role to be cast. Hmm.
But this is all moving quickly with an April shoot in the works, and the film set to be repped at the Berlin Film Festival where rights will be up for grabs. JGL's move into directing is hardly surprising given that he's already helmed a few short films, and given his whole earnest push for DIY/shared creativity through his hitRecord label/organization. But don't think this is just some vanity project he ripped out of the typewriter and decided to get made. “This is the first time I finished a feature film I thought was good enough to make into a movie,” he told Deadline. “I’ve written others, including one mammothy huge sprawling thing that encompasses my entire point of view of everything since I was 20 years old.” To be honest? We're already curoius about that mammothy huge script. But at least we're glad to see he's been choosy with what will mark his feature directorial debut.
Either way, he's certainly not lacking in experience having worked with some pretty great directors — Christopher Nolan, Rian Johnson, Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee — during his career. At any rate, this project is yet another in a tremendously busy year that will either see him filming/promoting "Django Unchained," "Looper," "Premium Rush," and "The Dark Knight Rises." It's a pretty enviable slate of films. So we'll see how JGL's transition behind the camera goes, but so far with ScarJo in tow, he's moving in the direction.
