American Fiction director Cord Jefferson is set to follow up his 2023 Oscar-winner with a neo-Western: more here.
American Fiction – pictured – was one of 2023’s most critically adored films and ended up featuring in lots of awards conversations. Director Cord Jefferson has publicly mooted a couple of different genres for his next project, floating the possibility of an erotic thriller around a year ago but ultimately, it looks like he and his crew will be heading out west to shoot his next film.
Whether that actually means America’s geographical west, we don’t know but Jefferson’s next film certainly looks like it will be set in that part of the country, with Deadline (via World Of Reel) reporting that his next project is a ‘contemporary Western set in Arizona about two brothers searching for a third sibling.’
The idea of a neo-Western is another one that Jefferson has previously talked about, with the filmmaker stating that he’d like to tell a story dealing with similar themes to American Fiction, but transpose those ideas into the enduring American genre that so often delves into the plight of the individual in a desolate and lawless territory.
It certainly sounds interesting, not least because in 2024 Jefferson talked about the project and also mentioned that it featured elements of a noir, suggesting that the project the filmmaker has been developing is being filtered through a heightened genre lens and we’re curious to find out how the filmmaker’s style will evolve as a result.
American Fiction was Jefferson’s directorial debut, although his resume boasts some impressive writing credentials. We don’t have any further details regarding this mystery project, including who is backing it or if any of the cast have been assembled. Still, Jefferson – a writer clearly bursting with smart ideas – delving into the genre that’s given us films like There Will Be Blood and Hell Or High Water to name but two, is an exciting prospect. We’ll bring you more on this one as we hear it.
