Jeff Bridges, you are no longer by your lonesome: TheWrap report that Meryl Streep, Alexander Skarsgård, and Cameron Monaghan (Shameless) are either signed for or on the verge of boarding The Giver, Phillip Noyce‘s adaptation of the seminal, Lois Lowry-penned young adult novel that will star Lebowski and newcomer Brenton Thwaites. If you, too, had forgotten that the project at hand was coming together — blame the nine-month gap in news — it might be for the last time, as The Weinstein Company and Walden Media plan to start shooting in just eight weeks.
Following its source material — which all who’ve completed 9th-grade English should be familiar with — Streep will portray Chief Elder of The Giver‘s insular community, which faces chaos when Jonas (Thwaites), Receiver of Memory — i.e., he who inherits memories of the time before conformity had taken precedence — begins to question a safe, bland world after eye-opening knowledge imparted by The Giver (Bridges). If signed, Skarsgård and Monaghan would, respectively, be seen as the boy’s father and best friend, smaller (if not still-crucial) roles.
Bridges, involved for some two decades, will produce alongside Tonik Productions.
Otherwise, in Deadline, a story informs us Marisa Tomei has a leading role in Love is Strange, the new film from Keep the Lights On helmer Ira Sachs. ’60s set John Lithgow (replacing Michael Gambon) and Alfred Molina have already been locked into this title, which sees the writer-director once again exploring a New York City-located gay romance — one betwixt older men, this time, and with a seemingly more expansive scope at its disposal.
38-year partner Ben (Lithgow) and George (Molina) have just become married, but, upon losing an apartment, make separate accommodations with their friends and family; Ben goes with his nephew, who is himself married to a novelist, Kate (Tomei). Do hijinks ensue from there? Given a more dramatic tenor found in Sachs‘ earlier output, it’s unlikely that jokes are the precise order of the day.
Does The Giver make a strong case for itself with Streep et al.? Are you hoping to see more from the Keep the Lights On helmer?