Wachowskis start casting Cloud Atlas
Work begins on brothers' next film
Although they are currently working on Cobalt Neural 9 , casting details have started to emerge regarding the Wachowski's next film, an adaptation of David Mitchell's (not that David Mitchell) novel, Cloud Atlas.
The novel is set in several different times and places, and each chapter centres around a different character (although each one has a comet-shaped birthmark...)
James McAvoy is in talks to play Adam Ewing, an American lawyer, crossing the Pacific in 1850, while Tom Hanks has been offered the role of Dr. Henry Goose, a surgeon to London's elite, and a passing acquaintance of Ewing.
Ian McKellen is circling the part of Timothy Cavendish, a London vanity publisher in the 1980s, who's trapped in an old people's home near Hull.
Halle Berry is reportedly considering the role of Meronym, a survivor in a post-apocalyptic future, while Natalie Portman could be playing the part of Somni 451, a cloned slave rebelling against society in a dystopian vision of Korea.
At the moment of course, these are just offers, and in most cases, the actors are very busy- McAvoy is currently shooting X-Men: First Class , Hanks was recently offered a role in Kathryn Bigelow's latest, Sleeping Dogs , possibly starring alongside Johnny Depp, while McKellen is still set to reprise his role as Gandalf in The Hobbit .
Still, this sounds interesting to us; after the tremendously unsubtle, candy-cane joyride/ car-crash of Speed Racer , we're intrigued to see how the Wachowski's fare with quieter, more thoughtful material. And, with a cast like this, we could be in for something quite special.
Sign up for the Total Film Newsletter
Bringing all the latest movie news, features, and reviews to your inbox
The Total Film team are made up of the finest minds in all of film journalism. They are: Editor Jane Crowther, Deputy Editor Matt Maytum, Reviews Ed Matthew Leyland, News Editor Jordan Farley, and Online Editor Emily Murray. Expect exclusive news, reviews, features, and more from the team behind the smarter movie magazine.
Jujutsu Kaisen's prequel compilation movie is coming in 2025, but we're still waiting on season 3's release plans
Spider-Man 4 may include a Marvel heroine although Sony cannot confirm it will be Anya Taylor-Joy as Black Cat, says boss: "There’s a lot of fantastic female characters, but I can't talk about all this"