Cronenberg on Matarese

David Cronenberg has long resided on the outskirts of Hollywood, making bizzarre, marginal films that never really connected with mainstream audiences. This of course, has always been his intention; to subvert and to challenge. However, after a series of films that bordered on the accessible (A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE, EASTERN PROMISES), Cronenberg seems ready to take a plunge into the heart of Hollywood.

On the eve of receiving France’s highest honour–the Légion d’Honneur–Cronenberg spoke to The Toronto Star about his next film THE MATARESE CIRCLE, based on the 1979 novel by Robert Ludlum. Originally set to direct the film, Cronenberg has revealed that he is writing the script as well, and that Tom Cruise and Denzel Washington are set to star as competing spies who team up to fight a common enemy. Here’s what the enigmatic director had to say about the project:

I’ve spoken to both Tom and Denzel, and they both want to do it. Usually when I write, I don’t visualize the characters, because I want them to have a life of their own, but in this case I am writing it specifically for these two actors. Tom and I get along very well. I was at his house in L.A. a couple of weeks ago, and he’s very excited.

One would assume that with those two heavyweights attached to star, the film would be a sure thing, but according to Cronenberg that’s not yet the case. Apparently the original script by Michael Brandt and Derek Haas failed to please the actors, the director and the studio, so before greenlighting the film, the studio wants to make sure they have a workable script.

They’re waiting to read my script, so I’m under a lot of pressure and I don’t want to screw it up. It’s not easy to keep all the satisfying elements people expect and still find a way to subvert the genre and surprise the audience.

Cronenberg is one of the most vanguard directors working in the contemporary Hollywood system so let’s keep our collective fingers crossed in the hopes that he doesn’t have to compromise his vision for a dude in an Armani suit who takes his steak rare. Click HERE to read the rest of the interview.