Steven Spielberg doesn’t stop. Two films this year – The Post and Ready Player One – Indiana Jones 5 in the works, and now West Side Story has surfaced as potentially his next film. The reason? Journalist Mark Harris, whose husband, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Tony Kushner is writing the film – tweeted out this casting call for the film:
Exciting Harris/Kushner household news: Something's coming. Something good. (h/t @marciliroff) pic.twitter.com/IlCV4VnGt6
— Mark Harris (@MarkHarrisNYC) January 26, 2018
So it’s clear Spielberg is involved with the film, and like the real world implications and themes covered in The Post, it’s easy to see why he’s interested in making a film that centers around two people from completely different backgrounds falling in love amidst a gang war revolving around how one group believes the other is unworthy of being deemed American, in the current climate.
However, this casting call still doesn’t confirm West Side Story is the director’s next film. He had spent a long time developing The Kidnapping Of Edgardo Mortara before that project fell to the backburner because Spielberg couldn’t find a child actor capable of carrying the film.
It’s easier to find capable adult actors than child ones though, so West Side Story might have the inside track to being Spielberg’s next film. It would certainly be interesting to see him tackle a musical, something which he’s never done before.
So while this news confirms Spielberg’s involvement, don’t be surprised if he, a man with fingers in many pies, proceeds to direct another film before this one. We’ll wait and see.
#Peace.Love.WestSideStory
