It is undebatable that the key ingredient to any Wes Anderson movie is its cast. Anderson usually sticks with the same faces such as the Wilson brothers, Jason Schwartzman and Adrien Brody to name a few, ensuring that his eccentricity and unique narrative styles stay true. It takes a certain something to be able to star in a Wes Anderson movie but his next addition to his roving band of actors makes perfect sense.
In an interview with Deadline, Anderson teased that he had just finished writing a brand new script with fellow director and screenwriter Roman Coppola just before the Writer’s Guild strike began. Anderson, fresh off the back of his most recent movie Asteroid City, declined to comment on the name or premise of his upcoming movie, but he did mention who would star.
Anderson said, "Well, you know, we have Michael Cera. He’s one of the other characters in this new story. And he’s somebody I probably met, I think, close to 20 years ago. At least 18 years ago, something like that. I met him with Harvey Keitel, so it must have been 2008 or something. But, anyway, Michael Cera. That’s one.”
Cera is no stranger to starring in quirky and eccentric movies. In 2010 he played the lead role in indie classic Scott Pilgrim and appeared in this year’s smash hit movie Barbie as ‘Allan’, an uncoordinated and quite awkward male doll who doesn't fit in. Cera's performance stole the hearts of audiences and added much comedic value to the movie. Although we don't have any insight into what kind of role Cera will be taking on, we do know that his quiet and witty nature will surely mesh well with Anderson's stylings.
Most recently, Anderson teamed up with streaming giant Netflix and created a series of shorts adapted from Roald Dahl stories, starting with one of the directors most loved childhood tales, The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar. The series stars an ensemble cast taking on multiple roles with past collaborators such as Ralph Fiennes (The Grand Budapest Hotel) and Rupert Friend (Asteroid City), as well as new faces including Doctor Strange himself, Benedict Cumberbatch.
It is uncertain when we can expect Anderson's secret script to be sent into production but we cannot wait to see Cera in action, Let's just hope he looks good in pastels.
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar will be available to stream on Netflix September 27. Why not check out our list of the 50 best Netflix shows to watch right now while you wait?
