Toni Collette is deservedly on a roll, adding two more roles to his busy schedule after already booking a gig earlier this week opposite Steve Carell in "The Way, Way Back," the directorial debut for "The Descendants" screenwriters Jim Rash and Nat Faxon. Joining Jennifer Aniston, Collete is looking to co-star in Paul Andrew Williams' melodrama "Miss You Already" and will also feature in Pascal Chaumeil's dark comedy "The Long Way Down."
Currently shooting Sacha Gervasi's "Hitchcock" for Fox Searchlight before diving into "The Way, Way Back" this summer, she'll follow that project with "The Long Way Down," based on the novel by Nick Hornby ("High Fidelity," "Fever Pitch"). Adapted by Jack Thorne ("The Scouting Book for Boys"), the movie will follow four strangers who all plan to commit suicide from the same rooftop on New Year's Eve. Collette has been cast as a mother of a disabled son while Pierce Brosnan is reportedly negotiating to play a talkshow host whose life has been ruined by a scandalous affair. After working as an assistant director and second unit director for Luc Besson in the 1990s, Chaumeil has been directing mostly French TV shows and romantic comedies, so it's possible the director will inject a decidedly lighter tone into the comedy about suicide. However, according to their casting, it looks like Chaumeil isn't looking specifically for comedic actors, though both Collette and Brosnan have proven that they can handle it. Production is set to start in late summer until early fall.
Break out the tissues for "Miss You Already." Aniston was cast in February as a one of two best friends who find their bond destroyed when one gets diagnosed with breast cancer and the other becomes pregnant with her first child. Collette will play the pregnant friend, which means that Aniston is on Barbara Hershey-duty as the friend with cancer. The project is intriguing, to say the least. Williams, has toiled mostly in horror movies like "The Cottage" and "Cherry Tree Lane," but his "Song for Marion" was picked up for distribution by The Weinstein Company last year and is seen as potential Oscar-bait later this year, so it looks like Williams is ready to move away from genre films. The director teamed with British comedienne Morwenna Banks on the script, which will shoot this fall in London.
So, to recap, that's "The Way, Way Back" this summer, "The Long Way Down" in late summer to early fall and "Miss You Already" in the fall. If you want her for anything else, you're going to have to take a number. [Variety]