Michael Fassbender Circling Brady Corbet’s New "X-Rated" Epic With Cate Blanchett and Selena Gomez
After the massive awards run of The Brutalist, Brady Corbet looks ready to swing for something even bigger and stranger with his next movie, and now Michael Fassbender may be joining the ride.
According to reports, Fassbender is currently in negotiations to star alongside Cate Blanchett and Selena Gomez in Corbet’s next feature, which is rumored to be titled The Origin of the World.
Corbet’s last movie, The Brutalist, became one of the most talked-about films of 2024, earning 10 Oscar nominations including recognition for Adrien Brody, cinematography, and original score. Instead of following that success with something smaller, Corbet appears to be going even more ambitious.
The filmmaker has described the new project as an “X-rated” feature largely set in the 1970s, though the story apparently stretches much further than that. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Corbet explained:
“The film spans from the 19th century into the present day — it’s just predominantly focused on the ’70s. The film is really, really genre-defying.”
That description makes this thing feel impossible to pin down, and the movie is aiming to push even further into unexpected territory.
The production also sounds incredibly ambitious. Reports claim the film will be shot using ultra-rare eight-perf 65mm cameras, which could give the movie an absolutely massive visual scope.
Corbet has also teased the sheer size of the script, revealing it runs around 200 pages long. For comparison, The Brutalist had a 165-page screenplay and clocked in at three and a half hours.
Fassbender has been on a great run lately, bouncing between prestige dramas, thrillers, and offbeat projects. He’s currently at Cannes promoting the South Korean sci-fi thriller Hope from Na Hong-jin, where he stars alongside Hwang Jung-min, Zo In-sung, Jung Ho-yeon, Taylor Russell, Cameron Britton, and Alicia Vikander.
Audiences also recently saw him in Steven Soderbergh’s espionage thriller Black Bag, the acclaimed Irish film Kneecap, and Paramount+’s spy series The Agency: Central Intelligence.
Meanwhile, Gomez continuing to branch deeper into prestige filmmaking is another interesting piece of this puzzle. Between her recent acting choices and Blanchett’s continued streak of powerhouse performances, this cast already feels like one of the most intriguing combinations Corbet has assembled yet.
The film will mark Corbet’s fourth feature as director following The Childhood of a Leader, Vox Lux, and The Brutalist. He also recently produced The Testament of Ann Lee, directed by his longtime creative collaborator and partner Mona Fastvold, who has co-written most of his films.
There’s still a lot we don’t know about this mysterious new movie, but with Fassbender potentially stepping into the cast, Corbet’s next cinematic experiment just became a whole lot more exciting.
Source: Variety