It’s a little surprising that Alejandro González Iñárritu racked up two Oscars for Best Director in the previous decade (in back-to-back years no less for Birdman then The Revenant) but has since gone somewhat quiet. Now he has re-emereged with his latest project, Limbo. Indiewire reports that cameras are now rolling on the film in Mexico City. Iñárritu also wrote the film, which explores “the political and social modernity of Mexico.” The film marks the first time Iñárritu has shot entirely in Mexico City since his 2000 breakthrough debut Amores Perros. It will also be his first foreign-language feature since 2010’s Biutiful.
What’s also curious is that it’s clear this project will be sold on Iñárritu’s name and reputation (being the only director to ever win back-to-back Oscars helps with that) since the film’s lead by Daniel Giménez Cacho, who previously starred in Pedro Almodóvar’s Bad Education and Lucrecia Martel’s Zama. That’s no disrespect to Cacho, but it’s not like The Revenant resting on Leonardo DiCaprio gunning for an Oscar.
But the film does have an exciting pairing with Darius Khondji stepping in as cinematographer. Previously, Iñárritu worked with Emmanuel Lubezki (who also earned back-to-back Oscars for Birdman and The Revenant), but Khondji is a new pairing. Khondji has an exciting filmography that ranges from thrillers like Seven to dark comedies like Uncut Gems to historical dramas like The Lost City of Z.
It will be interesting to see what Iñárritu does with his latest feature and if he’ll still be an Academy darling with his new project. With cameras now rolling, it’s possible that we could see Limbo as early as this awards season.