Orson Welles’ Unfinished Final Directorial Effort to be Completed and Distributed by Netflix

Unlike Charles Foster Kane’s “rosebud”, Orson Welles’ last directorial project will soon be seen and heard by the world.

Netflix has completed a deal for the rights to restore, complete, and distribute the master auteur’s final motion picture, The Other Side of the Wind. The deal came about after a viral campaign and petition pleading for the film’s completion, lead by cast member Peter Bogdanovich (The Last Picture Show, What’s Up, Doc?) and original production manager Frank Marshall (Back to the Future, Raiders of the Lost Ark), gained traction over the past month.

Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos stated after the announcement, “Like so many others who grew up worshipping the craft and vision of Orson Welles, this is a dream come true”

The film, which began shooting in the early 1970’s, is a mockumentary/drama centered on the last days of a Hollywood director struggling to make a commercial comeback, no doubt an autobiographical tale reflecting a point in Welles’ own career during the 70’s and 80’s.

Marshall and Bogdanovich will oversee the film’s completion with new producer Filip Jan Rymsza as they comb through more than 1,000 film reels and hours of footage to muster up a satisfactory final cut.

The Other Side of the Wind stars Peter Bogdanovich, John Huston, and Dennis Hopper (Easy Rider, Blue Velvet), among many others in classical Hollywood-style “cast of hundreds”. No release date has been announced yet.