Brad Bird’s rumored science-fiction drama 1952 was high on our radar for so many reasons – and that’s before Variety floated George Clooney’s name as a possible lead for the mysterious movie. Now 1952 occupies “Must-See” territory … which is bad news, because the film hasn’t exactly been greenlit yet.
Here are the details: Bird, who helmed The Iron Giant and The Incredibles, plans to direct 1952 as a follow up to his wildly successful Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol. Very little is known about the project other than the fact that it was co-written by Damon Lindelof and Jeff Jensen. The picture has been set up at Disney, and is drawing comparisons to Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind, following a man who makes contact with an alien race.
Beyond that, we know very little, though Clooney now appears interested in possibly playing the main character.
He would have to do so after helming The Monuments Men, a World War II thriller he recently signed on to direct with Daniel Craig, Bill Murray, John Goodman and Cate Blanchett in his cast. And audiences will be able to see Clooney in Gravity – another sci-fi thriller – that’s due out in 2013. So if Clooney accepts the 1952 role, he could be extending a sci-fi streak. Or 1952 could be more homegrown, more Earth-bound, and less extraterrestrial, like Close Encounters or even Super 8.
It’s early. But the idea of Bird collaborating with Clooney makes us even more excited for this potential drama than we were before. What are your thoughts on the possible casting?
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