One of Richard Linklater’s most likeable attributes is his ability to remain below the radar and not spill too many details on this upcoming projects. In fact, he’s a filmmaker that manages to keep his upcoming slate fairly secret and Before Midnight is no exception.
A few days ago Ethan Hawke said that Before Midnight, the sequel to Before Sunset and Before Sunrise, was in development and that they were scripting in Greece.
A day or two after that it was rumoured that production had begun and the film was shooting. Well, it turns out that none of these rumors were true.
According to Deadline, Before Midnight has actually finished shooting, with an image to prove it, and is going to be sold to buyers at TIFF.
The film will once again star Hawke and Julie Delpy playing Jesse and Celine, the lovers whose lives seemingly intertwine as they each travel around the world, bumping into each other in some of Europe’s most beautiful locations for a whirlwind romance.
Before Midnight is indeed set in Greece, and is scripted by Linklater, Delpy and Hawke who were Oscar nominated for their work on Before Sunset.
They collectively released this statement:
“It’s great to be back together again, this time in beautiful Greece to revisit the lives of Celine and Jesse nine years after Jesse was about to miss his flight.”
As the filming only just finished yesterday evening, there will be no sizzle reel or footage to screen for the potential distributors in Toronto but given the prior success of the franchise we can expect Before Midnight in theatres sometime next year.