Last year, around this time, people were predicting that Ron Howard’s most recent film, “Hillbilly Elegy,” would be a major Oscars player and potentially land Amy Adams her first trophy. Well, things didn’t necessarily go as planned. But that isn’t going to stop Ron Howard from landing major actors for his films that seemed primed for more awards consideration, such as his upcoming drama, “Thirteen Lives.”
According to Deadline, Ron Howard has signed Viggo Mortensen, Colin Farrell, and Joel Edgerton to star in his upcoming drama, “Thirteen Lives.” The film tells the incredible real-life story of the brave cave divers that went on a mission to save 13 people in Thailand. Those three men join an ensemble cast that includes Weir Sukollawat (“Malila”), Thiraphat Sajakul (“The Serpent”), Sahajak Boonthanakit (“The Serpent”), Vithaya Pansringarm (“The Prey”), Teeradon “James” Supapunpinyo (“Bad Genius”), Nophand Boonyai (“Only God Forgives”), Tom Bateman (“Death on the Nile”), Paul Gleeson (“The Thin Red Line”), and Lewis Fitz-Gerald (“Pitch Black”).
Obviously, that’s a huge ensemble for the film and it’s unclear how Howard’s film aims to manage that large of a cast. That said, when you have folks like Mortensen, Farrell, and Edgerton, at least you don’t have to necessarily worry about the quality of the performances, right? Those three men have earned a huge amount of acclaim and recognition over the years, and it’s clear that Howard is putting together yet another film that is going to have its sights set on awards season trophies.
However, as mentioned above, a good cast does not automatically make for a good film, as “Hilbillly Elegy” taught us. That said, we’ve seen Ron Howard turn in more solid films than terrible ones, so there’s hope that “Thirteen Lives” is going to live up to the incredible cast that is set to star. Production on the film is expected to begin later this month and will see the cast and crew filming in Australia and Thailand (naturally).