UPDATED: “Atlantis” has added rappers Mary J. Blige, Missy Elliot and Andre Benjamin to its cast, via Daniel Richtman. This is turning into one of the more exciting projects of Gondry’s career.
EARLIER: Michel Gondry is set to move into production next month on “Atlantis,” which is a musical inspired by musician Pharrell Williams’ childhood. Unless, the incoming actors strike delays it …
Gondry has been developing this musical since 2022. “It’s a pretty big budget, but it’s still something personal,” he told IndieWire’s Eric Kohn. This will be Gondry’s decade-long return to American filmmaking.
Pharrell formed the hip hop and R&B duo the Neptunes in the early ‘90s. During the aughts, he became lead vocalist of the band N.E.R.D. He’s also one of the most influential and successful music producers of the 21st century, having had a significant impact on the sound of modern popular music.
Gondry just premiered “Book of Solutions” at Cannes. It played in the Directors Fortnight sidebar to mostly positive reviews. It was the 60-year-old filmmaker’s first film in over 7 years.
Gondry will forever be known as having directed 2004’s “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.” I’m also a big fan of his inventively entertaining 2005 documentary “Dave Chappelle’s Block Party.”
Otherwise, he hasn’t really matched those two films the rest of his career, especially the landmark ‘Eternal Sunshine.’ His other works include “Human Nature,” “Be Kind Rewind,” “The Science of Sleep,” and “Mood Indigo.” And let us not forget he directed abysmal ‘Green Hornet’ with Seth Rogen.
It’ll be interesting to see what he does with the musical genre. Pharrell also has a lot of fans, so I wouldn’t be surprised if a big studio hops on-board this one.