Having stepped behind the camera himself for the very first time for his black comedy Bad Words in 2013, Jason Bateman is poised to return the favor, as the actor has signed on to star in Joel Edgerton’s directorial debut, Weirdo.
Written and directed by the Warrior star, the film will bring together Bateman and Rebecca Hall as a husband and wife who look to turn over a new leaf when they move to a seemingly idyllic town. However, a spanner is soon thrown in the works after an old friend from the past turns up out of the blue, threatening to tear their relationship to ribbons. It’s an arc that has been described as a “chilling and suspenseful” journey for the couple.
Given that the the concept centers around Bateman and Hall’s two leads, you begin to get the feeling that Edgerton’s outing will live or die on the chemistry between the pair, particularly considering that Weirdo is shaping up to be a no-nonsense drama.
And though the film will mark Edgerton’s first outing at the helm, the actor has written and directed a series of short films, all the while providing the screenplay for Tom Wilkinson’s Felony. As such, there’s no doubting his screenwriting chops, but we’ll just have to wait until the movie makes its bow before gauging whether his directorial debut is one to remember.
Production is poised to get underway in the coming weeks on the film’s Los Angeles set, and it’s expected that Weirdo will make its bow towards the end of 2015.