With “West Side Story” seemingly, finally hitting theaters later this year and “Indiana Jones 5” in the hands of James Mangold, Steven Spielberg continues to firm up plans for his next film, a coming-of-age story inspired by his own childhood growing up in Arizona. The idea of Spielberg mining his own childhood and relationships for a film is something we haven’t really seen too much of in the past, making this new film uttering fascinating. And adding to the intrigue is the incredible crew of actors the filmmaker is signing to bring the story to life.
READ MORE: Seth Rogen To Play Steven Spielberg’s Uncle In The Filmmaker’s New Coming-Of-Age Film
We already know Michelle Williams is set to play a character inspired by Spielberg’s mother in the new film, with Seth Rogen on board to play his uncle. But now, according to Variety, it appears Spielberg has found his father, with Paul Dano attached to star as a character inspired by the filmmaker’s real dad, Arnold. The report claims that most of the cast of the new film will be younger, unknown actors, including the kid who is ultimately signed to play the role inspired by the filmmaker’s own life. Though it’s important to point out this untitled film is not a true autobiography, as the characters are just inspired by their real-life counterparts, and the main character won’t even be named Steven.
Regardless, adding Dano to the cast is nothing short of excellent. In addition to his filmography of interesting, showstopping roles, Dano recently also flexed his filmmaking chops with his directorial debut, “Wildlife,” which is a family drama that was released in 2018. Dano’s next role is in the massive superhero film, “The Batman,” where it’s expected the actor will portray The Riddler, the film’s main antagonist.
Filming on the untitled coming-of-age film from Steven Spielberg, which he co-wrote with frequent collaborator, Tony Kushner, is expected to begin sometime this summer with a release date sometime in 2022 expected.