Any hope you had of Spielberg doing Interstellar next… throw it away. There’s more casting going on for The Trial of the Chicago 7, and a great source behind the scenes indicates to me that this movie is going forward ASAP. This source has also thrown me some scraps: the names of a couple of actors who have been offered roles as defendents in the case. But what be the most interesting thing this source has told me is that the whole Sacha Baron Cohen as Abbie Hoffman thing is no done deal. I don’t know what the hold up is – whether Borat wants more money or if the schedule isn’t working out – but apparently the folks behind the scenes aren’t sure that they’re going to be able to get him after all.
Two other actors that Spielberg wants, and who he’ll probably get, are Jeff Daniels and Colin Hanks. The Beard wants Daniels as Dave Dellinger, one of the oldest defendents in the case. Hanks, meanwhile, would be Rennie Davis, an SDS activist who was interested in political change rather than wholesale social change. I love both these choices, and hope they get signed to the film; Dellinger and Davis are certainly not the stars of this ensemble, but I think that both these actors (especially Daniels) can be memorable in short bursts.
In the meantime I’d like to make an appeal to anyone who can get me a copy of the script for The Trial of the Chicago 7. While happy to share some info, my source is just too close to the production to feel comfortable hooking me up. As a massive nerd for this period in history and this trial, I’m dying to see what Sorkin has come up with. You know my email address – get in touch if you have this one!
For more on my thoughts on this film and the actual trial itself, here’s a half-assed primer.