Pedro Almodóvar will be shooting his first full-length English-language feature in March. The film, set in New York City, is rumored to be about three female friends.
Now, Almodóvar has been quite hush hush about which actresses he’s cast in the leading roles, to the point where, in every interview, he’s refused to give away any details.
However, one name has finally slipped out. In an interview with Les Inrockuptibles, Tilda Swinton has confirmed that she is part of the film. It makes sense. Swinton starred in Almodóvar’s 2021 short film “The Human Voice.”
I’m also hearing that this mysterious new film, which Almodóvar is again refusing to give any plot details on, will be called “The Room Next Door.” So, at least we also have a title.
Earlier in the year, Almodóvar had confirmed that one of the actresses cast was British and the other two were American, adding that all three were his first choices and that they had all immediately accepted his offer to star in the film.
Although he’s now directed two shorts in English, “The Human Voice” and “Strange Way of Life,” Almodóvar has stated that they were just warm-ups to get him accustomed to directing English-speaking actors.
Almodóvar has had a storied filmmaking career since his 1980 debut “Pepi, Luci, Bom,” his most notable works include “Talk to Her,” “The Skin I Live In,” “Pain and Glory,” “Broken Embraces,” and “Women on the Verge of A Nervous Breakdown.”
As for Swinton, she loves working with the world’s best filmmakers like Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Jim Jarmusch, Joanna Hogg, Béla Tarr, Wes Anderson, The Coens , Bong Joon-ho, David Fincher, and George Miller.
“Hope,” Na’s first film in ten years — his last one being the exemplary “The Wailing” —is a gloriously messy, blood-soaked sci-fi epic that may become a cult classic despite—or because of—its polarizing nature.