Shubhabrata Dutta
Academy Award winner Jessica Chastain is without a doubt one of the most effortlessly intense actors in Hollywood. Be it in a sci-fi movie or a horror movie (‘It Chapter Two’), she is able to pull off her roles with equal ease across all genres. While she made her film debut with the 2008 drama ‘Jolene’ directed by Dan Ireland, it was 2011 that was her breakthrough year with six releases, including Ralph Fiennes’ ‘Coriolanus,’ ‘Jeff Nichols’ ‘Take Shelter,’ Terrence Malick’s ‘The Tree Of Life,’ and Tate Taylor’s ‘The Help.’
In 2014, came commercial success for Jessica Chastain with Christopher Nolan’s ‘Interstellar,’ followed by Ridley Scott’s ‘The Martian’ in 2015. In the former movie, she is a NASA scientist, and in the latter, she is an astronaut. So one can say that the two movies that made her into a star deal with stars themselves. Her more dramatic projects include ‘Salomé,’ ‘A Most Violent Year,’ ‘Molly’s Game,’ ‘Scenes From A Marriage,’ and ‘The Eyes of Tammy Faye’ for which she got an Oscar, Critics Choice Award, SAG Award along with a Golden Globe nomination. Here are the actress’s upcoming projects.
1. Dreams (TBA)
Michel Franco has completed filming this Freckle Films-backed romance that will show a forbidden romance between a lady who works at an arts foundation and a guy who is a ballet dancer. As for the cast, we have Chastain, who will presumably play the woman, and Mexican ballet dancer/actor Isaac Hernandez, who has been a member of the Dutch National Ballet and English National Ballet, among other ballet groups, who will certainly play the guy. We also have Rupert Friend, Marshall Bell, Jim Anderson, Tracy Todd, Lee Braithwaite, and Phillip Caires. Currently in post-production, this film’s international rights were sold to the Match Factory. It has yet to get a release date.
2. The Savant (TBA)
‘The Savant’ is a crime action limited series inspired by a Cosmopolitan article written by Andrea Stanley and published in 2019. Melissa James Gibson serves as the showrunner, writer, and executive producer. Stanely is up for consultation on the project. It is directed by Matthew Heineman. It revolves around a female undercover investigator known as “the Savant,” who infiltrates hate organizations that exist on the internet in order to bring down the nation’s most violent people and prevent public attacks.
The Apple TV+ series has eight episodes, and the cast, as revealed, includes Chastain as the Savant and Michael Patrick Thornton. The cast also includes Jeremy Bobb, Cole Doman, James Badge Dale, and Nnamdi Asomugha. Chastain serves as an executive producer under her banner, Freckle Films. The series is in its post-production stage. Further updates about the rest of the cast and the release date are awaited.
3. Lear Rex (TBA)
Written and directed by Bernard Rose, this is an adaptation of ‘King Lear,’ one of the greatest tragic plays ever written by William Shakespeare. Jessica Chastain will be playing the role of Goneril, the eldest daughter of King Lear, who will be played by the Godfather himself…Al Pacino. For those who do not know the story, it is about a King (Lear) who divides his land among his two elder daughters (Regan and Cordelia, played by Rachel Brosnahan and Ariana DeBose respectively), giving none to his youngest, Goneril, after she chooses not to feign love, unlike the elder two. Soon, Cordelia and Regan banish their father from the kingdom and take over. The rest of the cast includes Peter Dinklage, Ted Levine, Chris Messina, Danny Huston, Stephen Dorff, and LaKeith Stanfield. ‘Lear Rex’ is in its post-production stage, and more details, including a release date, are awaited.
4. Assassination (TBA)
Chastain will play Dorothy Kilgallen, the first female crime reporter in America, in Barry Levinson’s biographical thriller ‘Assassination.’ The film will delve into the fateful murder of former US President John F. Kennedy, reimagining his death as a hit ordered by Chicago mob kingpin Sam Giancana, exploring the suggestion that the assassination was payback for JFK’s attempts to undermine the mob, especially after they had played a significant role in getting him elected. Written by Sam Bromell, David Mamet, and Nicholas Celozzi (Giancana’s grandnephew), ‘Assassination’ will also have Al Pacino play Tony Accardo, a senior mob boss. The rest of the cast includes Brendan Fraser, Bryan Cranston, John Travolta, Shia LaBeouf, Viggo Mortensen, Rebecca Pidgeon, and Courtney Love. This film is currently in its pre-production stage, and further details about its filming and potential year of release are awaited.
5. The Division (TBA)
Jessica Chastain is a part of ‘The Division,’ a movie adaptation by Netflix based on the popular video game ‘Tom Clancy’s The Division’ whose first part was released in 2016. An action sci-fi thriller, the movie is set in the near future where a pandemic, transmitted through banknotes, has struck New York. A group of trained civilians are tasked with saving who and what remains.
The Netflix movie is to be directed by Rawson Marshall Thurber (‘Red Notice,’ ‘Skyscraper’) based on a script by Rafe Judkins, who has penned Amazon’s ‘The Wheel Of Time.’ But it seems that similar to the plot of the story, the movie itself has taken a hit due to the COVID-19 pandemic and has had multiple delays. The cast of the movie, currently in its turnaround stage, includes Chastain (one of the producers) alongside Jake Gyllenhaal (who has already been in another game-to-movie adaptation, 2010’s ‘Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time’), Todd Barrow, and McKinley Stamper. Further updates about the movie are awaited.
6. I Am Not Alone (TBA)
Netflix bought the rights to Chris Hicks’ sci-fi horror short story ‘I Am Not Alone’, which revolves around a mother of a young daughter whose hallucinations, as a result of migraines, subject her to see creatures. Since no one else can see them, only she can defend her family against the sinister entities. The production giant has roped in Misha Green to write the script and direct the movie as well. Other than Jessica Chastain, no other cast member has been revealed. Further updates about the production, teaser, and release date are awaited.
7. Untitled A Most Violent Year Sequel (TBA)
Jessica Chastain is very much interested in the sequel to the hit 2014 crime thriller ‘A Most Violent Year’ that starred her and Oscar Isaac. Written and directed by J. C. Chandor, the film is set in New York City in 1981, considered the most violent year in the city’s history, with over 2100 murders and more than 120,000 robberies. It revolves around an ambitious immigrant fuel supplier Abel Morales (Oscar Isaac), who takes the help of his own moral compass to keep his business and family, particularly his wife, Anna (Chastain), safe and thrive in the middle of all the corruption and violence.
Talking about the sequel, she told Entertainment Weekly, “Here’s the reality, and we’ll see if this ever happens, because this is a script I’m waiting to get written. Waiting on,” said Chastain. “It’s a story about capitalism using this family, [it’s] the American story. J.C. (director) has a really good… when I first met with him, he pitched me this whole idea, and I think it’s amazing, so I’m waiting. I’m just waiting to get a script.” There are no updates about the film other than these words from Chastain. So, the sequel is still far away, although it is sure to happen. Further details are awaited.
