I talk about this in my Oscar Eye column, which will be coming later this morning, but it's now looking official that The Road, Viggo Mortensen's next starring vehicle, won't come out on its intended release date of Nov. 14. Entertainment Weekly's Dave Karger brought up the rumor yesterday, and now HR is confirming it. Apparently director John Hillcoat hasn't finished the film, making the release date impossible to reach.
Even bigger news, though, is that The Road may be moved out of 2008 altogether, which marks a big shift in the Oscar race landscape, as wells as a blow for The Weinstein Co., which is distributing. They're also the people who are holding a gun over Stephen Daldry's head to finish his film, The Reader, so maybe they don't have the energy to pressure Hillcoat as well.
It seems best for everyone that Weinstein not put two rushed films out there within a month of each other, but damn, I was really looking forward to The Road. And it's a shame for Viggo Mortensen, who already turned in a great performance in Appaloosa this fall, to not get another chance at big awards.
