Gyllenhaal and Mulligan to star in Paul Dano's directorial debut, 'Wildlife'

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By Darian Scalamoni

            It’s a shame to see some great character actors not get all the credit they deserve. Those men and women who show up in any role and do a tremendous job but they’re not recognized by the general public. One of those actors has to be Paul Dano. He has starred in some of the best movies each and every year. He made his presence known first in 2006’s Little Miss Sunshine in which he plays the mute/depressed son of Toni Collette and Greg Kinnear. Though that movie is mostly a comedy, he has shown work in all types of genres including Sci-Fi (Looper, Cowboys & Aliens), Romance (Ruby Sparks), Thriller (Prisoners), Drama (12 Years a Slave, There Will Be Blood) and even a musical biopic for which he’s probably best known titled, Love & Mercy in which he plays Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys. He has worked with a number of tremendous directors in the past and now he is directing his very own feature.

            According to The Playlist, the movie will be called Wildlife. He actually co-wrote the script with long-time girlfriend and co-star in Ruby Sparks, actress Zoe Kazan. He movie is an adaptation of the Richard Ford novel of the same name that follows a teenager dealing with his parents’ relationship which is going south. Jake Gyllenhaal and Carey Mulligan have just been cast in the movie as the parents. Gyllenhaal starred with Dano in Prisoners and they will be seen in the upcoming Bong Joon-Ho sci-fi film Okja due out next year, as well.

            I’m incredibly excited for this movie especially since it has so many great creative minds attached already with Dano, Kaza, Gyllenhaal and Mulligan. Wildlife will begin production in November and it has now entered discussions for one of my most anticipated films of next year, by far.