Sartaj Singh
Paul Giamatti and Natasha Lyonne are headlining the cast of the biopic of the renowned author Philip K. Dick! They have joined Alexander Buono’s mind-bending film ‘Only Apparently Real.’ The project’s filming will start on an undisclosed date in San Rafael, California, where Dick lived for several years. Michael Richter wrote the screenplay based on Paul Williams’ biography ‘Only Apparently Real: The World of Philip K. Dick.’
Dick can aptly be described as a troubled genius whose writings paved the way for sci-fi gems like ‘Blade Runner,’ ‘Minority Report,’ and ‘Total Recall.’ His literary works, as well as his life, have a surreal nature to them, and he frequently had hallucinations that cast doubt on which events were real in his life. The plot of the film revolves around the break-in at his house in the early ‘70s. Dick (Giamatti) is going through his fourth divorce, struggling with writer’s block, trying to quit amphetamines, and feeling as though the government is spying on him.
As the narrative progresses, Dick’s manuscripts that are kept inside his safe get stolen when his house is ransacked. However, there is a distinct possibility that the break-in never actually happened. The movie will also focus on Dick’s psychological issues and challenges stemming from the death of his twin sister in infancy. The narrative will, therefore, have us attempting what the writer himself tried to do in his work: “to pierce through the veil of what is only apparently real and get to what is really real.”
Giamatti has a passing resemblance to the late Dick and a diverse portfolio of performances, along with two Academy Award nominations under his belt. His latest credits include Christian Barbrow in HBO’s ‘30 Coins,’ Chuck Rhoades in Showtime’s ‘Billions,’ and Paul Hunham in ‘The Holdovers.’ He is also slated to appear in Simon Curtis’ ‘Downton Abbey 3’ as Harold Levinson and Dwayne Johnson-starrer ‘San Andreas 2’ as Dr. Lawrence Hayes.
Lyonne is an actress, writer, and producer who gained acclaim for her work on Netflix’s ‘Russian Doll’ as Nadia Vulvokov and ‘Poker Face’ as Charlie Cale. She also appeared in ‘His Three Daughters’ as Rachel and ‘Glass Onion’ as herself. Her upcoming projects include ‘The Smurfs Movie,’ ‘The Fantastic Four’ reboot, Taika Waititi’s ‘Klara and the Sun,’ and another biopic, ‘American Dream: The 21 Savage Story.’
Alexander Buono previously worked with Lyonne by directing four episodes of ‘Russian Doll.’ His other prominent credits include episodes of Peacock’s ‘Based on a True Story’ and Hulu’s ‘Future Man.’ On the other hand, Richter is involved in the production of Netflix’s adaptation of John Scalzi’s ‘Old Man’s War’ and Disney+’s upcoming series ‘The Talented Ribkins.’
Located in Marin County, California, San Rafael is one of the state’s oldest cities and one that has a charming downtown area filled with historic buildings, theaters, and galleries. The city became home to Philip K. Dick when he moved into his house in Santa Venetia with his fourth wife, Nancy Hackett. His third wife, Anne Dick, describes the house in her memoir, ‘The Search for Philip K Dick,’ as a hermit home with a dead garden and dead tree, with Dick feeling as though the unwelcome wagon was going to come for him soon. San Rafael’s picturesque landscapes can be seen in films and shows like ‘Bridesmaids,’ ‘13 Reasons Why,’ ‘Basic Instinct,’ ‘American Graffiti,’ ‘Bumblebee,’ and ‘The Italian Job.’
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