Harsh Vardhan
Joel Edgerton is set to lead another sports drama after ‘The Boys in the Boat.’ The actor has joined the cast of Charlie Polinger’s feature film debut ‘The Plague.’ The shooting of the movie is scheduled to commence in New York in July. Polinger also wrote the screenplay. The plot revolves around a socially anxious twelve-year-old who grapples with the harsh social dynamics at an all-boys water polo summer camp. As the summer progresses, his tween anxiety escalates into a harrowing psychological ordeal.
Edgerton portrayed Coach Al Ulbrickson in George Clooney’s ‘The Boys in the Boat,’ which revolves around the University of Washington’s rowing team and their triumph at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. He also starred as Narvel Roth in ‘Master Gardener,’ directed by Paul Schrader, following a horticulturist whose life takes a turn when his wealthy dowager employer asks him to have her troubled great-niece as his apprentice.
Edgerton portrayed Harry Harris in ‘Thirteen Lives,’ which centers on a rescue mission narrative set in Thailand, focusing on a group of boys and their soccer coach trapped in underground caves. He also appeared as Mark Frame in the Netflix crime-thriller ‘The Stranger,’ exploring the complexities of friendship and hidden identities amidst a looming police operation. Additionally, the actor played The Lord in ‘The Green Knight,’ a fantasy retelling of the medieval tale of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.
Polinger’s recent directorial endeavors include the short film ‘Fuck Me, Richard,’ in which a romance enthusiast, who is recovering from a leg injury, finds herself entangled in a passionate yet potentially fraudulent long-distance relationship. He also helmed ‘A Place to Stay,’ a short set in 1959 Kansas City, unraveling the discovery of a lover’s hidden life. Furthermore, his 2018 short ‘Sauna’ mirrors themes explored in ‘The Plague’ as it depicts an awkward teenager’s struggles with bullies, puberty, and mortality at a summer water polo camp. Additionally, Polinger contributed to Gregory Kohn’s short film ‘Good People,’ which delves into aspects of guilt and reconciliation after an intense affair.
Most recently, we have seen projects like ‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’ and ‘Spaceman‘ come out of New York, one of the busiest entertainment production hubs in the country.
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