Edward Berger Confirms A24’s ‘The Riders’ With Brad Pitt Will Shoot “Early Next Year”

Every A-list actor in Hollywood wants to work with Edward Berger. The man has projects lined up with Colin Farrell, Matt Damon, Austin Butler, George Clooney, and now, Brad Pitt.

Fresh off his Oscar-nominated work on “Conclave” and the upcoming “Ballad of A Small Player,” Berger appears to have found what he claims will be his “next film.”

In an interview with Deadline, Berger confirms that the A24-produced “The Riders,” starring Pitt in the lead role, will be shooting “early next year.” Screenwriter David Kajganich is set to adapt the story from Tim Winton’s acclaimed novel.

Here’s Berger expanding on the film:

“The Riders” is a real character piece. We’ve got, I would say, the biggest movie star in the world, making a real character movie and really going for it. In this film, we pick up his character on a journey that starts with him building a house. He’s a real man, man. He’s not like me. This guy can build a house. We meet him as he is building a house for his family; he’s the real provider, the real traditional man, and then he is on the journey to find his wife who’s gone suddenly […] We take him from Ireland to Greece, to Brussels to Amsterdam and back to Ireland. It’s a massive odyssey throughout Europe, during which he falls apart. And I can’t wait to see Brad do that.”

Pitt, riding high off “F1,” is currently shooting David Fincher’s “The Adventures of Cliff Booth” until around December, and ‘Riders’ will be his next project after that. He also recently completed production on David Ayer’s “Heart of the Beast.”

Berger has a handful of projects lined up. He recently signed on to direct a film about Evan Gershkovich—the first American journalist to be arrested in Russia since the Cold War—for Amazon/MGM. He confirms that he is still attached to the next “Jason Bourne” movie. There’s also a time travel drama starring Austin Butler that he’s still attached to helm.

After his Netflix 2022 WWI epic “All Quiet on the Western Front,” which won four Oscars, the German-born Berger became one of the most sought-after directors in Hollywood. Who’d have thunk it? As mentioned, he’s coming off the acclaimed papal drama “Conclave,” which recently earned eight Oscar nominations, including Best Picture. Up next is this fall’s “Ballad of a Small Player.”