After starring in last year’s Of Mice and Men stage production on Broadway, James Franco continues his run with John Steinbeck’s work in his latest adaptation, In Dubious Battle. Published in 1936, the story follows a man in Southern California who tries to organize a fruit pickers’ strike.
Franco is on board to star, direct, and produce under his banner Rabbit Bandini Productions. Matt Rager– the screenwriter behind Franco’s two William Faulkner-adapted films– will pen the script. Principal photography commences this coming March.
In addition to re-visiting one of his favorite authors for source material, Franco will also reunite with former co-stars; his Spring Breakers co-star Selena Gomez, as well as comedy-buddy Danny McBride (Pineapple Express, This is the End) are both signed on to the project. The rounded-out cast also features heavy-hitters Bryan Cranston (TV’s Breaking Bad), Ed Harris (A Beautiful Mind), Robert DuVall (Apocalypse Now), and Vincent D’Onofrio (Full Metal Jacket).
This announcement comes in the midst of a pretty successful run for the movie Renaissance-man – even after the controversial The Interview/ Sony Pictures debacle. In 2015, he will star alongside Jonah Hill (The Wolf of Wall Street) in True Story, direct another ensemble cast in Zeroville, act alongside brother Dave Franco (Neighbors) in The Disaster Artist, and produce the fraternity drama Goat.
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