File this one under unorthodox casting. Harry Styles, singer for the popular tween band One Direction, may be making a move for the big screen in none other than Christopher Nolan‘s upcoming World War II action drama Dunkirk, according to Deadline. The role is unspecified and it appears no deal has formally taken place, but the Styles may surely add an unexpected ingredient to Nolan’s upcoming feature.
Dunkirk will recount the harrowing evacuation in the French commune during World War II (the event was previously filmed in Joe Wright’s Oscar-winning 2007 drama Atonement, in a striking tracking shot). Tom Hardy (The Revenant), Kenneth Branagh (My Week With Marilyn) and recent Oscar winner Mark Rylance (Bridge of Spies) are set to star in the film; British newcomer Fionn Whitehead and well as rising actors Jack Lowden (the upcoming A United Kingdom) and Aneurin Barnard (The White Queen) may join the film as well. Nolan wrote the screenplay and will produce the film alongside partner Emma Thomson. The film will be shot on Imax 65mm and 65mm large-format film.
While Styles hasn’t performed on screen yet, he has had a few offers come his way. Allegedly a role was offered to the young singer in Justin Chadwick’s upcoming Tulip Fever (in a deal, reportedly, orchestrated by marketing maestro Harvey Weinstein). Plans for that never went through but Styles is rumored to appear in the upcoming second season of the FOX series Scream Queens. If a deal comes into for Dunkirk, it would mark Styles’ feature debut. We will stay tuned to future developments.
Dunkirk is expected to hit theaters on July 21, 2017.