Viggo Mortensen is about to become a triple threat. The Green Book actor is set to write, direct, and star in The Dead Don’t Hurt, a western love story that will mark his second effort from behind the camera after 2020’s Falling. Phantom Thread star Vicky Krieps will co-star.
Set in 1860s America, Mortensen will play Danish immigrant Holger Olsen who crosses paths with an independent French Canadian woman Vivienne Le Coudy. The pair agree to travel together and ultimately settle down in a quiet town to start a life together. However, when the Civil War separates them Vivienne finds herself surrounded by the corrupt and nefarious men of the town.
Holger returns home from the war to find that both of them have changed in ways they could never have imagined. The story is being described as a “tragic love story and a tale of revenge” and “a portrait of a passionate woman determined to stand up for herself in an unforgiving world dominated by ruthless men.”
Mortensen said in a statement:
“My aim is to do justice to the story of a uniquely resilient woman living in a lawless and isolated part of the U.S. Southwest in the 1860s. Vivienne is a woman for all seasons; courageous, unfailingly honest and direct, yet capable of great empathy.
The idea is to not simply have a woman play the leading role in a Western, but to have her lead the way in our story by virtue of her fiercely uncompromising nature. Vivienne is a real woman who stands alone in her time and place because of her principled behaviour, forward-thinking, and passion for life.
We are very fortunate to have the talented Vicky Krieps embody this role, and, with the help of the great team we have assembled thanks to Talipot Studio, we hope to do justice to her exemplary life.”
The cast will also include Solly McLeod, Danny Huston, Tom Bateman, and Lance Henriksen, who starred alongside Mortensen in Falling. Mortensen will also produce the film – so does that make him a quadruple threat? – alongside Regina Solórzano and Jeremy Thomas.
It sounds like great pains have gone to make The Dead Don’t Hurt stand out from other westerns, especially with its fierce lead female protagonist. It will be interesting to see how it performs. Filming is scheduled to begin later this month in Canada.
#Peace.Love.TheDeadDontHurt
