It seems both Richard Linklater and Robert Redford are having a moment. The former will be spending a good part of 2013 doing laps for “Before Midnight,” his much anticipated sequel to “Before Sunrise” and “Before Sunset.” Meanwhile, Redford has his latest directorial effort “The Company You Keep” hitting theaters this weekend, a surprising role in the blockbuster “Captain America: The First Avenger,” an intriguing near-silent turn in the upcoming disaster pic of sorts “All Is Lost” and a must-read Esquire profile too. So perhaps it makes sense that these two old Sundance pals should decide to work together.
The LA Times reports that Linklater is set to direct “A Walk In The Woods” starring Redford and Nick Nolte, and if it sounds familiar, that’s because it is. The project has been developing for years with various filmmaker, and a couple of years ago, Redford and Nolte first became linked, but not much else happened. Until now. Based on the memoir by Bill Bryson, the tale follows a native Iowan who returns home after twenty years in England and decides to walk the Appalachian Trail. Redford would play Bryson, with Nolte as an old friend who joins him on the journey, in what has been described as a comedic version of “Into The Wild.” Or maybe like “Before Sunrise,” but with two old dudes in the woods? The basic template seems familiar…
Anyway, the film is being financed independently and if all goes according to plan, it will shoot this fall with Redford shepherding drafts of the screenplay, with Richard Russo (“Empire Falls,” “The Ice Harvest“) the latest to give it a whirl. Sounds almost a bit too easy for all involved, but we’ll still be fascinated to see the results.