Here’s a juicy bit of movie news: THR reports that Cate Blanchett will star in Canadian auteur Guy Maddin‘s upcoming drama “Rumors,” with shooting to start next week on October 9. Maddin’s latest film signed an interim agreement with SAG-AFTRA to allow the actress to film her scenes without breaching guild strike restrictions. With the ongoing strike, stories like this rarely break right now. But Blanchett teaming up with Maddin is super-intriguing nonetheless.
For those unfamiliar with Maddin, he’s a Canadian experimental filmmaker whose forte includes surreal storytelling and a fascination with silent-era movies and their flimmaking techniques. Maddin’s most regarded work includes 2007’s “My Winnipeg,” an experimental feature that mocks his hometown in Canada. He’s beloved in arthouse cinemas and on the festival circuit, but has never really broken out onto the global market. Working with Blanchett could change all of that.
For “Rumors,” Maddin reteams with longtime collaborators Evan Johnson and Galen Johnson. Their last film together? 2017’s “The Green Fog,” a 63-minute feature that revisits the plot of Alfred Hitchcock‘s classic “Vertigo” through other San Francisco-produced films and TV shows. Maddin has also done three shorts with Johnson and Johnson since “The Green Fog”: 2018’s “Accidence,” and “The Rabbit Hunters” and “Stump The Guesser,” both from 2020.
Of course, Blanchett needs no introduction for readers of The Playlist. She’s fresh off her highly-regarded performance in Todd Field‘s “Tár” from last year. She didn’t win an Oscar for the role, but she’s won Academy Awards previously for “The Aviator” and “Blue Jasmine.” Other revered roles for the actress include her work with Todd Haynes in “Carol” and “I’m Not There.”
No word on who Blanchett will play in “Rumors” for Maddin, though. Plot details for the feature are under wraps, but with shooting starting next week, expect more news on that front soon. Maddin’s latest is a Canadian-German co-production, with Buffalo Gal Pictures, Walking Down Broadway Ltd., and Thin Stuff Productions. The film also received financing from Telefilm Canada and Manitoba Film & Music. Elevation Pictures will handle the release of “Rumors” in Canada.
Blanchett is by far the biggest acting name Maddin has worked with, so expect “Rumors” to get a festival push when it premieres, likely in time for 2024’s Fall film fest season.
