A couple of months ago director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu revealed he was going in a slightly different direction with Birdman. He made his name with heavy dramas such as Amores Perros, 21 Grams, Babel and Biutiful, but Birdman in a comedy.
Now he’s started filling out the cast, and has got some great names involved. THR reports that Michael Keaton, Emma Stone, Naomi Watts and Zach Galifianakis have all signed up for the movie. The film is about a once-famous actor (Keaton) who’s almost completely identified with playing an iconic superhero (a neat meta-note for the former Batman).
He’s now keen for people to see him in a different light by lining up a comeback in a Broadway play. The plot takes place entirely at one location over the span of three days, as he tries to juggle his comeback attempt with his family life, which takes a toll on his sanity.
Emma Stone will play his daughter, a young woman fresh out of rehab who works as her dad’s assistant. Watts meanwhile will be an actress in the play, while Galifianakis will play the production’s conniving producer.
Shooting will start early next month (which suggests Stone will be finished on Amazing Spider-man 2 by then).