More news coming in today from the shoot of Paul Thomas Anderson’s latest, a film that is supposed to be shooting in an ultra-secretive set, but, judging by all the on-set photos that have leaked these past few weeks, with people swarming to get pictures of the actors, security has clearly not been tight enough. As far as official news goes, there is none, only that Bradley Cooper was “in talks” for a role, but leaked photos clearly show the actor on the set and shooting the movie.
“Soggy Bottom” is Set in a San Fernando Valley High School During the 1970s
As Mentioned, little is known about director Paul Thomas Anderson’s latest, curiously titled “Soggy Bottom,” if that’s even the title, except that it is set in Los Angeles’s San Fernando Valley during the 1970s and centers on a high school student who is also a child actor. Bradley Cooper was cast in the film just a few weeks ago and, this past weekend, the 45-year-old actor returned to the set with his Jon Peters-inspired get-up.
Bradley Cooper May Be Playing “A Star is Born” Producer Jon Peters
There have been rumors pointing towards the character Cooper plays actually being Jon Peters, the producer of 1976’s “A Star is Born,” leading to speculation that this could be about the making of the Streisand-Kristofferson film (cheeky kind-of-casting when you realize Cooper also wrote, directed and starred in his own remake of the film back in 2018). Based on leaked pictures from the secretive set, actress-musician Alana Haim’s does, in fact, look like Barbra Streisand’s from the same era.
Benny Safdie Portrays Closeted ‘70s Politician Joe Wachs
Officially, Cooper and Haim are the only confirmed actors attached to star in Anderson's new project, but it’s quite clear that others have already landed roles. Seen on-set during the shoot in Encino, California, writer-director-actor-editor Benny Safdie who will play real-life politician Joe Wachs. A Los Angeles Councilmember, Wachs was a closeted gay man with a larger-than-life personality who didn’t come out until the late ‘90s.
Phillip Seymour Hoffman’s Son is Also in the Movie
Also spotted, Phillip Seymour Hoffman son, Cooper Alexander Hoffman. The casting of Cooper is quite touching when you come to realize that his father and PTA had a legendary four-film director-actor partnership (“Magnolia,” “Boogie Nights,” “Punch-Drunk Love,” and “The Master.”) Hoffman Jr. is not a trained actor, he doesn’t even have an IMDB page to his name, and we don’t really know if he has landed a prominent role in “Soggy Bottom,” but this is the kind of casting that can’t help but put a smile on any movie fan’s face.
A 100 Day shoot is Expected with Daily COVID-19 Testing on Cast/Crew
Principal Photography on “Soggy Bottom” began about two weeks ago, with a shooting schedule of 3+ months expected. Everyone, from the cast to the crew, will be COVID tested weekly. There is no stage shooting planned for the film, as everything will be shot on location — I expected nothing else from PTA.
Leonardo DiCaprio Was Supposed to be in it
For a while now, we’ve known that PTA was hard at work on the project. Back in April, it was revealed that Oscar-winning actor Leonardo DiCaprio had passed on the Cooperf role in favor of working with Guillermo del Toro on “Nightmare Alley,” only to also pass on that one to work with Martin Scorsese on “Killers of the Flower Moon”.
Criterion's December lineup has some great additions to the library, but the title that jumped out at me is Werner Herzog's "Grizzly Man," which officially joins the Collection on December 8.