Fresh off his stellar turn in Foxcatcher last year, it appears that Steve Carell is game to lead another drama from a prestigious filmmaker. The Wrap reports that the actor is signing on to lead Forrest Gump and Back to the Future director Robert Zemeckis’ feature adaptation of the 2010 documentary Marwencol for Universal Pictures.
The original documentary, directed by Jeff Malmberg, revolves around Mark Hogancamp, a man who was assaulted by five teens and sent into a nine-day coma. When he awoke, he had no memory of his life, family, or friends. In an effort to cope with the trauma, he began building a 1/6 scale model of a WWII-era Belgian village in his backyard. The figures were made in the image of him, his friends, and surprisingly his attackers, and “allowed him to escape into a fantasy world in which he creates his various scenarios with the dolls.” Caroline Thompson (Edward Scissorhands) penned the screenplay, and Malmberg is an executive producer on the project.
Per an earlier report, Zemeckis’ adaptation will move between fantasy and reality, which makes sense given the filmmaker’s interest in using cutting edge technology for each of his films. He's currently in post-production on The Walk, which recounts Philipe Petit's illegal high-wire walk between the World Trade Center towers in thrilling 3D. It's unclear if Marwencol will be Zemeckis' next film, though, as he recently signed on to direct Brad Pitt in an untitled "sweeping romantic thriller" set during World War II.
This is an exciting project for Carell, though, who was previously set to follow Foxcatcher up with Gore Verbinski’s timely Pyongyang before the project was shelved due to the Sony hack. The actor is currently reteaming with Anchorman director Adam McKay on the financial crisis drama The Big Short opposite Christian Bale and Ryan Gosling.
Watch the trailer for the documentary Marwencol below.