Coming off a tremendous performance in Yorgos Lanthimos‘ pitch-black comedy The Lobster, Colin Farrell is gearing up for what sounds like another prestige project with Sofia Coppola's remake of the Clint Eastwood Civil War drama Beguiled. Variety reports that Farrell is in talks to take over the role Eastwood originated (talk about big shoes), as an injured Yankee soldier who takes refuge in a Southern all-girls boarding school where he cons his way into the hearts several women. A roguish babe-slayer? Yeah, I think he can pull that off.

If the deal closes, Farrell will join Nicole KidmanElle Fanning, and Kirsten Dunst in the film, which Coppola will write and direct. It would be his first time working with the Academy Award-winning filmmaker (Kidman's as well). Dunst previously starred in Coppola's debut film The Virgin Suicides and her 2006 spectacle Marie Antoinette, while Elle Fanning co-starred in the 2010 drama Somewhere. Youree Henley, who previously worked with Coppola on Somewhere and The Bling Ring is on board to produce with Focus Features distributing.


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Image via HBO

With Fantastic Beasts and another Lanthimos collaboration on the horizon, I'm aboard this mini-Colin Farrell renaissance we're having right now. He's always been a talented, magnetic actor and has only honed his skills over the years. While his resume is pretty hit and miss (especially in his early career, post-Minority Report push for Hollywood superstardom) but it's also peppered with performances that prove he's at his best when a project gives him credit for his talent. You see it in all the way back in Tigerland, in the absolute loveliness of Neil Jordan's Ondine, and in the excellent work he's done with Martin McDonaugh on In Bruges and Seven Psychopaths. Hell, I'll even go to bat for his Jerry in the Fright Night remake. I can't vouch for True Detective Season 2, but I hardly think that infernal clusterfuck can be pinned on him.

Point being, when he's paired with an exciting director, you're usually in for an equally compelling performance, and there's no doubt that Coppola is an exciting filmmaker. This material also seems right up her alley, and that cast of waifish blondes is conjuring up a real Virgin Suicides vibe. Which is an excellent, excellent vibe.

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image via Focus Features

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Image via Sony