There Will Be Blood, the 2007 adaptation of Upton Sinclair's novel "Oil!," brought auteur director Paul Thomas Anderson and Oscar-winning actor Daniel Day-Lewis together for the first time, but the duo may be looking to strike it rich with a new collaboration. This time around, the focus of the feature wouldn't be on the hard-scrabble oil fields and the ruthless folk who made their living from them, but rather the world of 1950s fashion in New York.
Variety reports that Thomas Anderson and Day-Lewis are in talks to work on a new film together, though no deal is currently in place. The write-up also states that Day-Lewis has been loosely attached to the untitled project for some time, but with no studio lined up at the moment, it's safe to say that this one is still in very early stages of development. Still, with talent like this even hinted at working together again, things could firm up rather quickly.
Day-Lewis, who last starred in the title role of Steven Spielberg's Lincoln and won an Oscar for his performance, famously appears in relatively few movies but always leaves a strong impression when he does. Since the last go-round with Thomas Anderson earned Day-Lewis his second of three Best Actor Oscars, this new collaboration comes front-loaded with a lot of anticipation, expectation, and excitement. However, the focus is likely to be less on the actor and more on the director, who's still looking for his first Oscar win.
Thomas Anderson has been nominated six times over the years: four writing nominations for Boogie Nights, Magnolia, Inherent Vice, and There Will Be Blood; a best-directing nod for There Will Be Blood; and a Best Picture nom for There Will Be Blood. Clearly the joint effort of PTA and Day-Lewis drew a lot of awards attention almost a decade ago, so if and when this new project gets off the ground, you can bet the buzz will be less about the movie and more about the potential hardware.
Though we have little to go on, do you think Thomas Anderson could finally land an Oscar with this new film? Do you think Day-Lewis has a shot at adding a fourth win to his record? Perhaps both? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
