Very exciting news indeed. Writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson (Boogie Night, Magnolia, There Will Be Blood) has announced his next project: a film entitled Master, in which a man creates his own religion [Cinematical]. That man will be Philip Seymour Hoffman, who has appeared in all of Anderson’s films save Blood.
Variety reports: “The project is set up at Universal, which will make a decision about whether to greenlight the pic, with a $35 million budget, once Anderson delivers a finished script.”
The film will be a period piece (taking place in the early 1950s) and Hoffman will be the “master” of his religion, taking on a young drifter as his right-hand man.
Anderson taking on religion full steam (he touched on it through Paul Dano in Blood) is certainly welcome as it seems this auteur’s vision grows more and more ambitious with each new film. Hoffman at the center offers a more-than-reliable leading man. Now all they need is for Universal to greenlight it give them that $35 million.
What do you think of this news? Are you a fan of Anderson’s past work?