In 2014, director Richard Linklater’s film Boyhood opened to rave reviews, eventually winning a host of awards, including an Oscar for Patricia Arquette. Linklater’s approach to making the film involved working with the same cast over the course of 12 years — a logistical feat without much precedent in the narrative film world. How does one top that? For Linklater, the answer involved adding some music.
The filmmaker is now in the midst of making an adaptation of the Stephen Sondheim musical Merrily We Roll Along, which is set over the course of 20 years. Linklater’s adaptation will be made in real time, meaning that it should be appearing in theaters sometime in the 2040s.
This is potentially alarming news for fans of Sondheim and/or Linklater with concerns about, you know, whether or not they’ll be alive in the 2040s. Linklater himself will turn 80 in 2040, and seems well aware of those concerns. He addressed them in a recent interview with IndieWire.
“I can see how the actuarial tables say you may or may not be around to experience the final movie,” Linklater told IndieWire. “But frankly, I’m on that same table, so I tell them, ‘Don’t count yourself out.’ We’re all getting there.”
Revisiting “One From the Heart,” the Film That Almost Bankrupted Francis Ford Coppola, 40 Years Later
The movie turned the beloved director into a Hollywood outsiderLinklater’s film will star Paul Mescal, Beanie Feldstein and Ben Platt. It’s not necessarily coming soon to a theater near you, but it will be playing there — eventually.
More Like This
Thanks for reading InsideHook. Sign up for our daily newsletter and be in the know.
