Casey Affleck, fresh off his Academy Award for Best Actor for Manchester By The Sea, has signed on to star in the adaptation of Stoner. Affleck will star as a poor dirt farmer-turned-academic who surprisingly emerges as an existential hero in the first half of the 20th century.
Joe Wright (Hanna, The Soloist) will direct the film from a script written by Andrew Bovell (A Most Wanted Man), based on the novel of the same name by John Williams. Blumhouse Productions is set to produce the film, and Jason Blum of the studio recently expressed his enthusiasm for the adaptation:
“Because the novel is so beautiful but not well-known, fans of Stoner feel like they’re in a secret club. I’m so excited that Casey, Joe and Andrew have come aboard to help expand this club’s membership. This quintessentially American work is being brought to the screen by a terrific international team and we’re confident their combined perspectives will add rich layers to this moving story”.
Blumhouse have recently had huge success with Jordan Peele‘s Get Out and M. Night Shyamalan‘s Split, so signing on Affleck is another feather in their cap, and another project they’ll be hoping turns into a big hit.
Affleck often excels in lonely, desperate roles where he must carry the film himself and Stoner looks to be the perfect projection for him to latch onto.
He’ll next be seen alongside Robert Redford and Elisabeth Moss in Old Man And The Gun, while Wright’s most recent film, Darkest Hour starring Gary Oldman as Winston Churchill, is set to arrive in cinemas Wednesday, November 22.
#Peace.Love.Stoner
