After decades of creating masterpieces in filmmaking, Paul Schrader finally secured his first Oscar nomination with “First Reformed” and looks to the future with his new project “Nine Men From Now.” In a recent interview with IndieWire, the director reflects on his work and gives us a colorful description of what ‘Nine Men’ has in store for us.
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Schrader officially has the green light for ‘Nine Men,’ and is planning to start production this summer. Originally meant to include “First Reformed” star Ethan Hawke (“Boyhood“), it looks like that casting choice fell through. However, Willem Dafoe (“The Florida Project,” “John Wick“) is still attached to the project for now. When asked about the premise of his new film, Schrader told it to IndieWire pretty straightforward.
“Basically, if you took a script from 1956 that Budd Boetticher made with Randolph Scott, and you asked Terry Malick and David Lynch to come in and take a shit on the script, you would have the movie I’m making,” he said.
The Budd Boetticher script in question is “7 Men from Now,” a western following a lawman tracking down the seven men responsible for a robbery. Boetticher was known for his low-budget westerns, but Schrader is looking to play around a bit with the original premise, with actors switching roles and switching sides halfway through the movie. No wonder he cited “Twin Peaks” creator Davide Lynch in his description. Though we will have to survive with Hawke in the cast, this mind-twisting meta western doesn’t look like one to miss.
As for “First Reform,” the Oscars haven’t even started and Schrader is ready to move on. Even after decades of filmmaking, this filmmaker is still always looking to the future.