The Cold War indie Reykjavik appears to be heating up. Now that Mike Newell has stepped in to the director’s chair (taking over for Sir Ridley Scott, who was rumored though never confirmed), the political drama began looking for its Mikhail Gorbachev. According to reports, Newell found him … and it’s inspired casting.
Django Unchained star Christoph Waltz reportedly has signed on to face down Michael Douglas’ Ronald Reagan in the upcoming historical drama, according to Variety. The duo will work off of a Kevin Hood screenplay that captures an off-the-radar meeting between the international powerhouses in the Icelandic capital city that, for all intents and purposes, brought an end to the Cold War.
Speaking of the hire, Newell said he feels “very fortunate to have two such masters to portray the men who brought about the end of the third great war of the 20th century.” And yet, it’s not a “war” in the traditional sense, meaning Newell can’t fall back on traditional battle scenes to heighten tension. By the sound of it, Reykjavik will boil down to two men going toe-to-toe with what we hope is a dense and compelling screenplay. Because handing this project to Douglas and Waltz sounds like a match made in heaven.
Reykjavil will begin filming in March 2013, according to the trade. In the meantime, Waltz will be seen in Tarantino’s next film, Django, which hits theaters in December. Newell has Great Expectations coming to theaters after a successful film-festival run. And Douglas will be playing Liberace in Behind the Candelabra, an HBO movie directed by Steven Soderbergh that we should see sometime next year.
