Jack is back! It’s been nearly seven years since Jack Nicholson last graced screens, starring in James L. Brooks’ How Do You Know, but the actor, who turns 80 this spring, is now finally mounting his return to Hollywood: he will reportedly be starring in Paramount’s remake of Maren Ade‘s Oscar-nominated Toni Erdmann.
Ranking quite high on our best films of 2016 list, the nearly three-hour German comedy follows Peter Simonischek and Sandra Hüller as father and daughter, respectively, and their escalating peculiar relationship of practical jokes. As of now, Paramount has no director or writer attached, but things are moving fast on the project. Update: Variety reports that Kristen Wiig will join Nicholson in the film, taking the daughter role.
While there’s no doubt many directors have pursued the Shining star in the last few years to star in their films (The Judge and 42 come to mind), this is a project he personally came to Paramount with. CEO Brad Grey then rapidly put together a producing team, which includes Adam McKay, Will Ferrell, and Ade, who is joining as an executive producer.
We’ve been waiting to see if Nicholson would ever return to acting, and this choice of project is quite the double-edged sword. On one hand, he’s a perfect fit for the Winfried Conradi/Toni Erdman role, but for his return to be of a Hollywood remake (the list of successes in cinema history in this category is a short one), we just hope a fitting writer and director come aboard. As we await more updates, check out the trailer below.
What director and actress would you like to see join Nicholson?