Disney's Jungle Cruise movie is looking to start filming soon, which means it's been filling out its cast. The newest addition will reunite Dwayne Johnson with one of his San Andreas co-stars, sort of. Paul Giamatti has reportedly taken a role in the new film. He was also in the earthquake disaster movie San Andreas with The Rock, although the pair never actually shared the screen in that movie. It seems, based the part Giamatti is taking here, that probably won't be the case here.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Paul Giamatti will play the role of a "crusty harbormaster" in the Jungle Cruise movie, a role which will almost certainly come in contact with the boat captain played by Dwayne Johnson. The story will see Johnson's skipper taking a sister and brother, played by Emily Blunt and Jack Whitehall, through the Amazon in search of a tree that allegedly has healing capabilities. Exactly where the harbormaster fits into the story isn't clear, but one would expect he runs the harbor at the beginning of the adventure down the Amazon. If so, the part could be a small one, though clearly a significant one if they wanted Giamatti to play it.
Needless to say, Paul Giamatti as a "crusty harbormaster" in a Disney movie sounds like just about the worlds most perfect casting. With Jungle Cruise being compared to the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise as far as the sort of tone the movie is going for, I can see Giamatti's character being something akin to the role of Jack Sparrow's first mate Mr. Gibbs. A bit rough around the edges and humorous in a curmudgeonly way. It feels like the sort of role he was made for. It will probably be a lot of fun to play, and also a lot of fun to watch.
Disney's Jungle Cruise has been an idea in development for years, but only in the last year or so has it really begun to get forward momentum. With a cast that includes Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt, who will be seen later in Mary Poppins Returns, it certainly has the star power to be another major live-action Disney hit.
While Jungle Cruise is expected to film over this coming summer, the movie still has no set release date. A summer 2019 date would make the most sense if filming will be done in a few months, but Disney's 2019 calendar is already pretty full, so it could be looking at a later date. The next open slot on Disney's official release calendar for an untitled live-action movie is April 3, 2020, which seems like a likely candidate.
Whenever we go on a Jungle Cruise, it looks like we'll be going with a stellar cast.
