Earlier this year, Ben Affleck noted that while he wasn’t sure what project would be the next he’d attach his directorial stamp to, he was keen to get something up and running by the end of the year. Looks like that search is narrowing down pretty quickly, as Affleck’s name is in the news today as potentially directing, as well as writing and starring, in Universal’s long developing film Ghost Army.
Based on a book/documentary on a crucial piece to the World War II war effort, Ghost Army would be about a specific group of warfighters: namely, a squadron tasked with fooling the Axis armies into thinking that Allied forces were greater than they actually were. Through creative means of deception including inflatable tanks, convincing sound effects, and fake intelligence, it was a secret directive that recruited notables like designer Bill Blass and photographer Art Kane into its efforts.
The project sounds like a dream come true for Ben Affleck fans, as his skill set for telling true stories about diplomatic fakery was proven back in 2012, with the Best Picture winning film Argo. So if anything, Ghost Army feels like a spiritual prequel to that film, as it’s another case of the U.S. Government enlisting the best and brightest creative minds to turn the tide of an international conflict.
It would be a welcome return of Affleck’s writing/directing efforts, as he’s been out of action in those respects since 2017’s unfortunate flop Live By Night. But with his acting chops still moving along, most recently in Netflix’s Triple Frontier, one third of the equation is already raring to go with the challenges that Ghost Army will present.
It’s a moment that has been long awaited for Ben Affleck, as when Variety grabbed the scoop, they also reported that he’d been looking to set up camp with Ghost Army for quite some time. But now, it looks like his scheduling has timed out just right with Universal’s intent for the project, allowing all to move forward.
That being said, it’s still up in the air as to when exactly Ghost Army will start marching into production, as Affleck will still need to do some rewrite work on the film. This is after a script originated by Shazam! writer Henry Gayden, as well as a rewrite by True Detective creator Nic Pizzolatto.
Seeing Ben Affleck come back to writing and directing with Ghost Army is something exciting for fans, as his recent departure from the DCEU felt like a bump in the road for his recent career. Now all that has to happen is for Kevin Smith to write a reunion between himself and one of the characters Affleck played in his View Askew-niverse, or for Warner Bros to greenlight The Accountant 2, and all will be right with the world.
Ghost Army has no production start date specified, or release date in mind. If you want to see what 2019 has on offer for eager moviegoers, you can take a look at our 2019 release schedule and find your next night at the movies!
