Roman Polanski will be celebrating his most recent escape from legal troubles by making a film set in Brooklyn packed with Oscar winners, God Of Carnage. Kate Winslet, Jodie Foster, Christoph Waltz, and Matt Dillon will star in the story of two strangers who meet to discuss a fight between their children on a playground. Everything goes to hell however, and the two start attacking the parenting styles and marriages of the other. The play was surrounded by acclaim in 2009, when it won a number of Tony Awards. On stage the cast has boasted Ralph Fiennes, Marcia Gay Harden, James Gandolfini, and Jeff Daniels across its two major productions.
Even though Polanski was declared a “free man” and released by the Swiss police in July, he still can’t return to the US, so Paris will have to stand in for Brooklyn once they start shooting in February. The director had of course been arrested in Zurich in 2009 for possible extradition to the United States to face the 30 year old sentencing from which he fled, but the Swiss ruled otherwise. His support system remains strong, as he can still pack a film with a high-caliber cast and apparently has distributors competing to secure the project.
God Of Carnage is one of the few Broadway productions (though this one began in Europe) that was on my radar, and the set-up is a good one. Christoph Waltz is continuing to enjoy his post-Basterds Oscar success, and this is definitely among the more interesting projects he’s signed onto since. Expect this to make it across the Ocean for a healthy release- Polanski hasn’t had much trouble getting his films over here before.
Source | Deadline