Noah Hawley, creator of Fargo and Legion, is set to make his feature debut with sci-fi flick Pale Blue Dot, but last year it suffered a setback when star Reese Witherspoon was forced to drop out. Fortunately, the film can move from one big star to another, as Natalie Portman is in talks to take over the lead role.
The film revolves around a successful female astronaut who starts to unravel as she returns from space and seeks to readjust to everyday life, as the movie aims to explore the theory that astronauts lose their sense of reality after spending long amounts of time in space. Hawley will direct from a script written by Brian C. Brown and Elliott DiGuiseppi.
It’s another great role for Portman who has recently performed or secured a number of excellent roles in great looking films, from her superb Oscar-nominated portrayal of Jackie Kennedy in Pablo Larrain‘s Jackie, to the lead in Alex Garland‘s much-anticipated Annihilation.
Witherspoon is actually still involved in the project, as she didn’t depart with any ill will, but instead was looking to clear her schedule to make way for the now-official second season of Big Little Lies. She will still help produce the film.
Hawley was originally intending to direct a film title Buried Bodies as his feature debut, before Witherspoon signed on to Pale Blue Dot and gave it momentum. However, the only snag on the film seems to be when it will actually be filmed, as Hawley is currently shooting Legion season 2, with FX recently announcing a new season of Fargo that will debut in 2019.
However there could be an opening during the summer where Hawley was supposed to be involved in creating a Doctor Doom movie at Fox, but the future of the film is unclear and should open up a spot on his schedule. Either way, collaborating with Portman will likely become a first priority, and hopefully the intriguing premise of Pale Blue Dot can develop into an equally excellent finished film.
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