Steven Spielberg has been developing his biopic of Abraham Lincoln for eons. When it was initially announced, it seemed it wouldn’t be long before it went in front of the cameras with Liam Neeson in the lead role. However it kept getting delayed and delayed until Neeson eventually announced that he was no longer part of the film.
That was several months ago, and it’s only now that a replacement has been announced, with Spielberg saying he’s now signed Daniel Day-Lewis to play honest Abe. The director commented, “Daniel Day-Lewis would have always been counted as one of the greatest of actors, were he from the silent era, the golden age of film or even some time in cinema’s distant future. I am grateful and inspired that our paths will finally cross with Lincoln,”
Based on Pulitzer Price-winning historian Doris Kearns Goodwins book Team of Rivals, the movie will chronicle Lincoln’s struggles with his cabinet to end slavery, which led to the Civil War. The script has been written by Angels In America scribe Tony Kushner.
The Dreamworks press release suggests shooting will start in the autumn of 2011, which means that while it was recently said Robopolyse would be the next movie Spielberg shot (he’s already filmed both War Horse and Tintin, both of which will be released December 2011), that won’t happen now until after Lincoln. That said, with the project having looked on the verge of getting made for years, don’t be shocked if it gets delayed again.