It isn’t often that a filmmaker works on a project for three decades in relative silence, but it appears Richard Linklater has been holding out on us: recently, Ethan Hawke let slip that he and his “Before Sunrise” and “Boyhood” collaborator were hard at work on a project that explores the origins of Transcendentalism in America. The project has since been confirmed by Linklater himself, which means we have another esoteric bit of storytelling to look forward to from our favorite director-actor duo.
In a recent conversation with IndieWire, Linklater opened up a little bit about the script, describing himself as “kind of overwhelmed by the amount of material” available to him as a writer. Because of this, the filmmaker has “toyed around with it as a series,” but remains uncertain as to the best format for his story. Regardless, here’s what he had to say about the origins of the project:
“Ethan has been blabbing about this lately. I’ve been working on this since 1989. I got to know the writer Robert Richardson before he died. I grew up going with my dad to the Emerson Unitarian church. There’s been a lot of scholarship about that period. So many women from that era have been overlooked. It’s hard to make a movie about historical figures who aren’t military or political figures. But I want to make a movie about ideas set in the 1840s or 1850s.”
Linklater’s reference to Hawke “blabbing” about the project is in reference to the actor’s comments at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival, where he offered his own perspective on the long-gestating project:
“They were the first leaders of the abolition movement; they were vegetarians; they fought for women’s rights. [Linklater] is obsessed with how their ideas are still very radical. This could be a super cool movie and Rick is writing it right now.”
READ MORE: Ethan Hawke: The Essential Performances
Transcendentalism emerged as a political and philosophical movement in the early nineteenth century, with its proponents arguing that mankind’s inherent goodness was overshadowed by the corruptive elements of society. Baked into this philosophy were sharp criticisms of the United States government for its continued support of both slavery and ongoing discrimination towards indigenous populations. Given the types of projects that both Linklater and Hawke are drawn towards – in particular, Hawke’s involvement in the historical abolitionist series “The Good Lord Bird” – this feels like a fitting passion project for both filmmakers.
