David O. Russell in Talks to Direct ‘Get Smart' Reboot — John Mulaney Might Star

Here’s a scoop from DanielRPK.

Warner Bros is rebooting “Get Smart” and none other than David O. Russel is in talks to direct. John Mulaney is said to be “interested” in the starring role which was last played by Steve Carell in 2008.

So, how many projects is that now for Russell ? He has that Linda Ronstadt biopic, with Selena Gomez, the John Madden biopic, starring Will Ferrell, a FIFA limited series, and “Toys” which has Sacha Baron Cohen and Keke Palmer attached to star.

Is he just picking up all of these projects just to see which one of them sticks?

Last we heard from Russell, he had punched a Sony exec in the gut at an Oscar party. Film-wise, Russell’s last effort was the ill-received “Amsterdam,” which lost 20th Century over $100 million. However, there’s been a small little reappraisal going on for “Amsterdam,” which we all figured would get bashed by critics, even before its release. Russell was already a targeted man due to past behavior.

Some critics are starting to come out of the woodwork defending “Amsterdam.” That’s nice to see. Russell didn’t deserve the absolute hate he got for the film. It wasn’t that bad.

West Coast critic Glenn Heath Jr. is stated that “American critics are going to wake up in 10 years and realize they missed a big one here. I'm astonished by its effortless speed and charisma. A true throwback.” That’s quite the prediction. Sight and Sound’s Ryan Swen agreed.

Writer-Director Matthew Wilder had also recently emailed me his positive words about Russell’s film, he’s a big fan, and added that “in a sane world, Margot Robbie would have gotten an Oscar nod for “Amsterdam.”

The New Yorker’s Richard Brody also seems to believe “Amsterdam” will age very well. He’s very much a part of the aforementioned revivalist movement for the film. Ditto Rolling Stone’s David Fear who describes the film as a “radical act” courtesy of Russell.