The Coen Brothers themselves have been planting the seeds of “Hail Caesar” for a while now, teasing last fall that this would be next. First conceived years ago, in what would’ve been part of their loose knit “Numbskull Trilogy” following “O Brother Where Art Thou?” and “Intolerable Cruelty,” “Hail Caesar” was initially about a 1920s matinee film idol who takes on an Ancient Rome epic. But it seems that the sibling duo have upgraded the setting and the focus, as they gear up to finally make this one their next film.
Deadline reports that the Coens are putting the project together, but reveal an entirely different storyline, one that focuses on a fixer in the 1950s who works for Hollywood studios to protect their stars. So, it’s still a showbiz story, but one with a bit of a different bent. “It’s about the movie business and life and religion and faith. Faith and the movie business,” Ethan Coen said in December, adding: It’s still George [Clooney].” That’s right, the long attached/involved Clooney is still in the mix as far as Coen is concerned, but there’s nothing official yet.
As always, the Coens are simply some of the best American filmmakers going, and even though too many people (including the Academy) slept on “Inside Llewyn Davis,” it was up there with their best. We’re definitely excited to see them take on another time period with their trademark tone.
