Eugene O'Neill's Pulitzer-winning play “Long Day's Journey Into Night” was adapted into a film, helmed by noted theater director Jonathan Kent, in his feature debut. This latest version, starring Jessica Lange, Ed Harris and Ben Foster, wrapped filming in November 2022.
In a 2024 interview with Vulture, Lange was cryptic, but also not very hopeful about the current status of the film. It sounded like there were some behind the scenes issues:
Who knows if it will ever come out. It’s in some weird limbo. It’s not finished.
When asked if was a “money issue” that’s been holding back the film, Lange answered with a confused tone “I don’t know what it is, exactly. Money? Differences of opinion?”
Quiver, a tiny specialty distributor that makes even Vertical and Briarcliffe look behemoth, has picked up U.S. distribution of the long-delayed film from fellow micro-indie Blue Fox. Blue Fox had previously acquired the rights from Amazon MG.
The company is reportedly planning a low-key release for the film, likely in early 2026, followed by a digital rollout, with little emphasis on awards contention. The movie already made its North American debut at the Nantucket Film Festival in June.
As initially reported by the New York Times, back in the fall of 2022, filming was briefly halted on “Long Day’s Journey Into Night,” after just a few days of shooting, when a financier unexpectedly exited the project. It started back up a few days later when BKStudios came into the picture.
In the adaptation, set during a long and contentious day in 1912 Connecticut, Lange plays Mary Tyrone, the morphine-addicted matriarch of the Tyrone family; she previously played the role in 2016 on Broadway, which was also directed by Kent, and won a Tony for her work. Harris will play her husband, James, an aging actor who fears he's led his family into financial ruin. Ben Foster plays their alcoholic elder son, Jamie.
O’Neill’s play has been adapted multiple times for the big screen, including, most notably, in 1962 by filmmaker Sidney Lumet who delivered a near 3-hour tour de force.
Nobody expected a 55-year-old NC-17 movie to be one of the surprise box office stories of the fall. Yet here we are, and this absolutely puts a smile on my face.