According to multiple reports, Sean Penn (Mystic River) will now be directing Javier Bardem (Skyfall) in addition to Charlize Theron (Snow White and the Huntsman), Adéle Exarchopoulos (Blue is the Warmest Color) and himself in African-set romance drama The Last Face. This will mark the first time Penn has acted in and directed the same film.
In The Last Face, Bardem will star as a gifted doctor working in Africa who meets and falls in love with an American relief worker, played by Theron. It seems Bardem’s character finds himself in a situation where is forced to choose between his newly found love and his medical work. Exarchopoulos, critically acclaimed for her role in last year’s Blue Is The Warmest Color, which won the coveted Palme d’Or at last year’s Cannes Film Festival, will be playing a journalist in the film. With Bardem, Theron, Exarchopoulos and himself, Penn has assembled a strong award-winning cast to support this new picture.
Pen is far better known as an actor than a director, winning Oscars for his work in Mystic River and Milk, but this is far from his first time behind camera. He most recently directed the adaptation of Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild, which he also wrote and produced, and has also helmed The Indian Runner, The Crossing Guard, and The Pledge.
We’ll look forward to more information as it becomes available. The film is currently in pre-production.
Leave a Comment