Following up his semi-autobiographical tale Armageddon Time––a film which sadly seemed to get the short shrift upon release last year––James Gray was developing a John F. Kennedy biopic, but now the filmmaker is shifting gears for a project that will reunite him with Focus Features.
His next film will be Ezekiel Moses, Deadline reports. Written by Keith Bunin, the script appeared on the Black List about a decade ago when Philip Seymour Hoffman became attached to direct it. It’s now in the hands of Gray, who will tell the depression-era ghost story about a young, imaginative boy living in a small town who befriends a mysterious drifter who may or may not have the supernatural ability to communicate with the dead.
With Likely Story producing the film and Bunin recently updating a draft of the script, pre-production will get underway shortly, so hopefully we could see the film as early as 2024. While known for his plays, Bunin also scripted Horns and Onward, and is writing Questlove’s live-action hybrid remake of The Aristocats––yes, a project that I’m indeed not fabricating.
As we await casting news, check out a recent extensive conversation with Gray below.