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Big Gay Picture Show

Taking a look at the world of film through gay eyes - news, reviews, trailers, gay film, queer cinema and more

Taking a look at the world of film through gay eyes - news, reviews, trailers, gay film, queer cinema & more

Natalie Portman & Nicholas Hoult Up For Xavier Dolan’s Death and Life of John F. Donovan

February 10, 2016 By Tim Isaac Leave a Comment

Nicholas-Hoult

Back in 2014 Jessica Chastain, Kathy Bates, Susan Sarandon and Kit Harington all signed up to star in the first English-language film from queer Canadian writer/actor/director Xavier Dolan. It’s taken longer to get it going than originally planned (largely because he slotted in the upcoming It’s Only the End of the World beforehand), but Dolan has managed to hang on to his cast, along with previously announced actors such as Michael Gambon, Bella Thorne, Chris Zylka and Emily Hampshire.

However, he’s decided that isn’t an impressive enough ensemble, as Variety reports that Natalie Portman, Nicholas Hoult and Thandie Newton have joined The Death and Life of John F. Donovan. The film is about an American TV star (Harington) with everything working out for him who has a secretive correspondence with an 11 year old in London. When a gossip columnist (Jessica Chastain) makes the whole thing look indecent, his life is turned upside-down.

It’s not clear who the newly announced actors will play, but it is known that Kathy Bates is set to be the actor’s high-powered manager, while Sarandon will play his mother.

Film rights are currently being sold at the Berlin film festival, with plans to shoot later this year.

 

CHECK OUT THESE RELATED ARCHIVES:
ACTORS: Nicholas Hoult, Natalie Portman, Thandie Newton, Kathy Bates, Kit Harington, Susan Sarandon, Jessica Chastain  DIRECTORS: Xavier Dolan  FILMS: The Death and Life of John F. Donovan  

Susan Sarandon & Kathy Bates Join Queer Filmmaker Xavier Dolan’s First English-Language Film

December 9, 2014 By Tim Isaac Leave a Comment

kathy-bates-susan-sarandonBack in September it was revealed that Xavier Dolan fan Jessica Chastain had signed on to star in the Quebecois filmmaker’s first English-language movie. Now she’s has some company, with the queer director ensuring that the film has plenty of impressive female talent by adding Kathy Bates and Susan Sarandon to the cast. Kit Harington is also set to star.

The new movie is called The Death and Life of John F. Donovan, which Dolan has previously described as “the story of an American movie star with everything working out for him who has a secretive correspondence with an 11 year old in London.”

THR expands on that, saying Kit Harington’s title character is famed for playing a popular superhero, ‘whose life and career are turned upside-down when his private correspondence with an 11-year-old fan is exposed and made to look indecent by a villainous gossip columnist (Jessica Chastain).’

Kathy Bates is set to be Donovan’s high-powered manager, while Sarandon will play his mother.

Dolan comments, “I’m so psyched about working with these two wonderful, mythical actresses. My excitement is almost convulsive.”

He adds, “Susan Sarandon’s role of the mother is tricky for me because it’s feels very real. The rapport my mom has with my life [since my profile has risen] — and of course I’m not as famous as the character of Donovan — is different now. I think all people can relate to this because whenever you walk out of the path that’s been traced for you, people from your old life find it a little menacing, because it questions their own worth.”

Dolan made waves when he won a prize at Cannes for his directorial debut, I Killed My Mother, which he helmed when he was only 18-years-old. He’s made four more acclaimed films since then (Heartbeats, Laurence Anyways, Tom At The Farm and Mommy), all of which have concerned the queer experience in one way or another.

CHECK OUT THESE RELATED ARCHIVES:
ACTORS: Kathy Bates, Kit Harington, Susan Sarandon, Jessica Chastain  DIRECTORS: Xavier Dolan  FILMS: The Death and Life of John F. Donovan  

Jessica Chastain Circling Queer Filmmaker Xavier Dolan’s English Language Debut

September 12, 2014 By Tim Isaac Leave a Comment

jessica-chastainXavier Dolan has been making waves in the art movie world for the last few years, with many expecting him to becoming a major force in filmmaking ever since he won a prize at Cannes for his directorial debut, I Killed My Mother, which he helmed when he was only 18-years-old.

He’s made four more acclaimed films since then (Heartbeats, Laurence Anyways, Tom At The Farm and Mommy), all if which have concerned the LGBT experience in one way or another, but he’s stuck to his French-Canadian roots by avoiding the English language. That’s going to change though, as Bent reports he readying his first English-language effort and Jessica Chastain is circling to star.

She seems to be a bit of a fan of the filmmaker, as back in May after watching Dolan’s latest movie, Mommy, she tweeted, ‘Completely blown away by @XDolan. His film, MOMMY was so impressive’.

The new movie is called The Death and Life of John F. Donovan, which Dolan has described as “the story of an American movie star with everything working out for him who has a secretive correspondence with an 11 year old in London.”

Dolan tells Bent, “It was this friend of mine – a journalist – who had brought to my attention that Jessica Chastain had seen ‘Mommy’ in Cannes and had liked it and tweeted about it. I went back and scrolled down the tweets and there was this lovely tweet where Jessica was saying that she had liked ‘Mommy.'”

‘It dawned on me that I should ask Jessica about playing the ‘villain’ role in ‘John F. Donovan. There is this character of the editor-in-chief of a gossip magazine. The movie really is a satire of the business — more dramatic than humorous. And there’s this antagonistic figure that wants to ruin the lives of every star, especially that of the lead character. And I reached out to Jessica and she read the script. She loved it, and we got along like hotcakes. That’s basically it. I can already foresee all the pleasure we’ll have working together.”

Assuming it all works out with scheduling, Chastain will be on the set when shooting kicks off in Montreal, New York, Miami, England and Eastern Europe next year.

CHECK OUT THESE RELATED ARCHIVES:
ACTORS: Jessica Chastain  DIRECTORS: Xavier Dolan  FILMS: The Death and Life of John F. Donovan  

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