“Take Shelter,” which won over audiences at Sundance and Cannes earlier this year (and was snapped up sight unseen by Sony Pictures Classics), has turned out to be quite the calling card for Austin filmmaker Jeff Nichols.
His next movie, “Mud,” is already in the works, and the coming-of-age tale has landed Matthew McConaughey and Reese Witherspoon for its starring roles, Deadline reports.
The film is financed by Everest Entertainment and produced by Everest’s Lisa Maria Falcone, “Take Shelter” producer Sarah Green and FilmNation Entertainment’s Aaron Ryder.
Nichols’ film, which he will direct from an original screenplay, follows the fugitive Mud (McConaughey) who turns to a teenage boy (“Tree of Life” actor Tye Sheridan) to help him escape from the law to meet his beloved (Witherspoon). Ryder has described the film as being in the vein of “Stand By Me.”
At one point, Chris Pine was reported as being in talks for McConaughey’s role.
The riverside setting and coming-of-age motif will inevitably draw comparisons to Huckleberry Finn, though the film will be set in the contemporary world.
“Take Shelter,” which won Critics’ Week in Cannes, will open September 30. Here’s the trailer, in case you haven’t see it already (it’s pretty great, as is the film):
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