Things are finally coming together for Paul Thomas Anderson's adaptation of the Thomas Pynchon detective novel Inherent Vice. With production set to begin later this month, Anderson has secured Joaquin Phoenix to star, and is closing negotiations with several other promising performers. January brought news that Charlize Theron was up for the film. Earlier this week we reported Benicio Del Toro was in talks for a small but meaty role, and The Wrap is reporting Owen Wilson is close to signing as well.
Set in Los Angeles from the winter of 1969 through the summer of 1970, Inherent Vice centers on a pot-smoking private detective named Larry "Doc" Sportello as he investigates a kidnapping case that involves his ex-girlfriend, Shasta Fay Hepworth. Phoenix is set to play Sportello, making Inherent Vice his second collaboration with Anderson following the critically heralded drama The Master. Should he sign on, Del Toro will play Sportello's likely scene-stealing lawyer, Sauncho Smilax. Theron is rumored for the female lead (possibly Shasta?), but the specifics on Wilson's could-be role are being kept completely under wraps at this time. Wilson's representatives are not commenting on this casting news, but The Wrap insists he will play one of the feature's leads.
With production on Inherent Vice kicking off in short order, we should get news on casting confirmations soon. The final film is expected to roll out in 2014, likely through a prestigious film festival premiere. In the meantime, Phoenix will be seen in James Gray's forthcoming crime drama The Immigrant (formerly called Lowlife). And look for Wilson in The Internship, a comedy that reunites him with his Wedding Crashers' co-star Vince Vaughn.
