JJ Abrams is recruiting quite the cast for his return to directing, with Samuel L Jackson added to his mystery movie.
There are a lot of reasons to look forward to JJ Abrams’ next project, which is being set up at Warner Bros.
Firstly, a report back in August said it has vibes of The Last Starfighter, a film which has long deserved a remake or revisit of some kind. Rights issues and other problems have long made that wish rather fanciful so a project that channels some of the 1984 film’s spirit, tone and ideas will be welcome instead.
Then there’s the return of Abrams, a filmmaker who hasn’t directed a film since 2019’s Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker. The cold reception to that film has left many speculating that he may well be in director jail, although it hardly seems fair to blame the clear insitutional failings of Lucasfilm on Abrams to the point where he hasn’t gotten a film production underway in well over five years.
FInally, there’s the cast. Glen Powell is in, Jenna Ortega and Emma Mackey join him. There’s the sense that this could be one of those projects that embellishes those younger actors, continuing their transformation into the kind of movie stars that their generation has been seen to lack in an era stuffed with franchise films, IP and comic book superheroes.
Now The Hollywood Reporter is stating that the untitled film just got a little more exciting with the news that Samuel L Jackson has joined the cast.
Jackson is sure to bring some trademark prickliness for the younger members of the cast to bounce off and if the rumoured involvement of Harrison Ford turns out to be true, then we’re very much looking forward to a grump-off between the two actors. It’s just as likely though, that Jackson could be taking the role that Ford was rumoured to be considering back in August.
Also a plus, this is such a stacked cast that even Warner Bros wouldn’t dare delete this project once it’s made.
A while ago we heard that the movie was coming together under the working title of Acorns and that the film’s story centered on a ‘young married couple struggling to survive against a supernatural entity.’ Rumours have also swirled that parts of Hollywood weren’t keen on the script so overall, this is all turning out to be a fascinating mixture.
We’ll bring you more on this project as we hear it.
