With shooting taking place back in early 2014, for any other film, we might be worried about the long wait it has taken for Warren Beatty to complete his Howard Hughes drama. However, with the director known to spend his time in the editing room, delicately putting together the pieces of his puzzle, so to speak, we’ll gladly wait. Finally completed this year, the drama’s been picked up by 20th Century Fox and now we have the first look, title, and release date.
Coming from EW (in case you didn’t pick up on the egregious watermarks), we can see Alden Ehrenreich (Hail, Caesar!, a certain new Star Wars film) and Lily Collins (Mirror Mirror) in Rules Don’t Apply, which marks Beatty’s first directorial effort in nearly two decades, following Bulworth. The drama, set in 1958, follows Collins’ character as an actress and Ehrenreich as her driver, two conservative individuals who form a bond working under the eccentric billionaire.
“This ain’t a biopic about Howard Hughes,” Beatty says, though he adds, “I never lost my curiosity about him. It’s just that I don’t run around doing movies all the time.” Focusing more on the love story between our two leads, Beatty — who also produced and wrote the script — also acts in the film, alongside Alec Baldwin, Matthew Broderick, Candice Bergen, Steve Coogan, and Annette Bening. Set for a release on November 11th, check out the new images above and below as we await the first trailer.
From legendary Academy-Award winning director Warren Beatty, comes RULES DON’T APPLY. Blending equal measures of humor and heart, this is the unconventional love story of an aspiring actress (Lily Collins), her determined driver (Alden Ehrenreich), and the eccentric billionaire (Warren Beatty) who they work for.
It’s Hollywood, 1958. Small town beauty queen and devout Baptist Marla Mabrey (Collins), under contract to the infamous Howard Hughes (Beatty), arrives in Los Angeles. At the airport, she meets her personal driver Frank Forbes (Ehrenreich), only two weeks on the job and also from a religiously conservative background.
Their instant attraction not only puts their religious convictions to the test, but also defies Hughes’ #1 rule: no employee is allowed to have an intimate relationship with a contract actress. But Hughes’ absurd behavior intersects with Marla and Frank in very separate and unexpected ways, and as they are drawn deeper into his bizarre world, their values are challenged and their lives are changed.
RULES DON’T APPLY is written, directed and produced by Warren Beatty. In addition to the performances of the two young leads (Lily Collins and Alden Ehrenreich) and Beatty’s portrayal of Hughes, the director brings together a stellar ensemble including: Alec Baldwin, Annette Bening, Haley Bennett, Candice Bergen, Matthew Broderick, Dabney Coleman, Steve Coogan, Taissa Farmiga, Ed Harris, Megan Hilty, Oliver Platt and Martin Sheen.
Rules Don’t Apply opens on November 11th.