Having taken an obvious Hollywood paycheck with the fluffy rom-com Morning Glory (sorry, but true), Brit director
Roger Michell, the man responsible for Notting Hill, Enduring Love and Venus will next direct a decidedly more dramatic fare and with a movie that will continue his ability to genre-hop seemingly without fear of losing one's identity.
Deadline are reporting that Michell is currently looking to cast the leads for
Hyde Park On Hudson, a historical drama from screenwriter
Richard Nelson that's set over one weekend in 1939 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt shared an incestuous relationship with his distant cousin, Daisy at his upstate New York home. Intriguingly, Film4 who turned down the opportunity to finance the eventual Oscar winner and mega hit The King's Speech, are funding this movie which has a large supporting role for King George VI (who Colin Firth won an Oscar for portraying) and Queen Elizabeth who history tell us were the first reigning British monarchs to step foot in the States on that eventful weekend. Clearly Film4 aren't wanting to lose out on the Academy and audiences love for the British monarchy (ironically they actually turned down The King's Speech precisely because they had this film in development and thought it was a conflict of interest!) and if casting comes together soon, producer
Kevin Loader is hopeful it could film this year. An interesting period in U.S. history to base a film on and an obvious greenlight after The King's Speech success. As for who could play Roosevelt, well, it's rare for a movie to be based on a 57 year old (as he was at the time) so expect many of Hollywood's older fare to cite interest as these gigs doing come up often. One man who instantly came to mind for me was
Michael Douglas who looks a lot like Roosevelt actually, but whether his health can permit him to lead a movie these days is another question.
If not, a rare leading role for Jeff Daniels would be welcomed in these parts...