So many Nancy Meyers projects, so little incentive to keep track of any. Now, however, some of us may have zero choice: after several titles were hinted at over (give or take) the past 18 months, word has come in, via Deadline, that Worldview Entertainment and Scott Rudin are putting into motion The Intern, a (what do you know!) comedy that could soon nab Robert De Niro and Reese Witherspoon — her own personal picks — for its central roles.
As scripted by Meyers, the project — once meant for Tina Fey; this, it would certainly seem, is no longer the case — centers on “the founder of a highly successful fashion website (Witherspoon) who is prompted to take part in her company’s Senior Intern Program.” Lo and behold, an elderly widower (De Niro) “who shows up with a suit and a briefcase” becomes a part of the effort, their relationship growing from “old world and new world business values into something more as the intern becomes a mentor to the young entrepreneur.” Notices of her “generational zeitgeist” pictures — It’s Complicated, Something’s Gotta Give, What Women Want — arise, a bit of comparison which, I think, fits the “comfort zone” quality of her projects: if audiences liked one, they’ll probably like another.
Universal, Warner Bros., and The Weinstein Company are hoping to The Intern.
In other director-related deals, THR inform us the Guillermo del Toro-produced, Kevin Costner-led Midnight Delivery has found its man: Otto Bathurst, a British television director (this writer only knows him for the excellent series premiere of Black Mirror) who’s making his feature debut on the project. Said project, initiated by the Pacific Rim helmer, was scripted by Neil Cross and centers a man who comes into conflict with Colombian drug dealers who have kidnapped his daughter, forcing him to smuggle cocaine on a London-bound red eye.
Universal Pictures are backing Midnight Delivery.
One last bit, also from THR, notes that Jacob Tierney will get behind the camera for Baseballissimo — which, as co-scripted (with Jesse Chabot) and starring Jay Baruchel, reunites director and lead from The Trotsky and Good Neighbours. The dramedy, based on a novel penned by Dave Bidini, follows “a young Canadian minor league baseball player bound for major league stardom until his attitude gets in the way and he finds himself in a coastal town in Italy under odd circumstances.”
Gefilter Productions and A71 Productions are behind Baseballissimo.
Do you hope to see Meyers, De Niro, and Witherspoon partner on The Intern? Do these other projects pique your interest?