Greta Gerwig, who’s currently at the top of Hollywood’s next-big-thing list of starlets, following The House Of The Devil and Noah Baumbach’s Greenberg, has landed perhaps her most commercial role to date, as the main love interest in the remake of Arthur.
She’ll be stepping into Liza Minelli’s shoes at the working class woman who gets together with Russell Brand’s rich, drunken playboy, Arthur, but faces opposition from his family, who threaten to take away his inheritance if he doesn’t go with their choice of hoity-toity woman. As a result, Arthur turns to his formet nanny, played by Helen Mirren (taking over the valet role John Gielgud won an Oscar for), to help him sort out his life.
It’s a bit of a plum role for Gerwig, who should be able to bring her down-to-earth charm to the part, and keep the movie grounded opposite the eccentric Brand. Jason Winer is directing, with shooting due to begin later this year.