After two decades in front of the camera, Ewan McGregor is stepping behind it for his feature film directorial debut. McGregor will take over AMERICAN PASTORAL which he was set to star in for director Phillip Noyce. Noyce has been involved with the project for over a decade in which time the film has shifted cast-members and filmmakers. McGregor will remain the lead in the film alongside Jennifer Connelly and Dakota Fanning.
Here’s the synopsis for AMERICAN PASTORAL, based on the award-winning novel by Philip Roth.
The story follows Seymour “Swede” Levov (McGregor), a legendary high school athlete who grows up to marry a former beauty queen (Connolly) and inherits his father’s business. Swede’s seemingly perfect life shatters when his daughter (Fanning) rebels by becoming a revolutionary and committing a deadly act of political terrorism during the Vietnam War.
Ewan McGregor has been a staple in indie films since the mid-1990s when he broke through in Danny Boyle‘s SHALLOW GRAVE and TRAINSPOTTING. Since then he has been known to mainstream audiences for playing Obi-wan Kenobi in George Lucas‘ STAR WARS prequels. He has consistently worked in projects on screen and stage as well as his documentary series LONG WAY ROUND and LONG WAY DOWN where he traveled the globe via motorcycle.
It is tough to be anything but excited for McGregor who has always seemed to be a likeable guy in person and on screen. AMERICAN PASTORAL is a very high profile project for him and one that we should be hearing a lot about when it hits screens. Currently, the film is slated to begin production in September, so stay tuned for more details as to casting and release in the coming months.
