Lynne Ramsay Says Joaquin Phoenix Arctic Epic ‘Polaris’ Is Her Next Film and Calls It Her ‘2001’

Lynne Ramsay, a great filmmaker, released “Die, My Love,” starring Jennifer Lawrence and Robert Pattinson, last year — her first film in over eight years. It was met with mixed reviews, but, given that this is Ramsay, it was not a bore, but rather a fascinating addition to her filmography.

Back in October, Ramsay told an Aussie outlet that she currently has two new projects already greenlit and ready to go. Firstly, and most pertinently, there’s the long-gestating “Polaris” — starring Joaquin Phoenix and Rooney Mara — which is very much alive, and last year saw Ramsay confirm Jonny Greenwood’s willingness to compose the score.

In a new interview, Ramsay tells The Gentle Woman, in what the outlet describes as a 3.5-hour chat, that “Polaris” is next for her, and she feels it will be her ‘2001’:

My next film, Polaris, sees a photographer go to Alaska. He meets the devil in the Arctic. It’s my epic, my 2001.

Set in the 1910s, “Polaris” follows a photographer who goes to Alaska to take photographs of the Inuit and encounters the devil in the Arctic. I suppose that if this is indeed Ramsay’s next film, then it will also be Phoenix’s, who is coming off his sudden, abrupt exit from Todd Haynes’ “De Noche” last year.

Furthermore, Ramsay says “Stone Mattress,” her adaptation of the Margaret Atwood short story about wealthy tourists on an Arctic cruise, still has Julianne Moore attached to star as a passenger “seeking to punish her high school rapist against the backdrop of melting icebergs.” “It’s a revenge film, but it’s environmental,” Lynne says. “The character uncovers the past, and the landscape is uncovering the past as well; it’s melting.”

More curiously, according to Ramsay, Netflix and Saint Laurent are interested in acquiring the project, but nothing’s locked in just yet. The biggest challenge is “the bloody boat,” says Ramsay, since she wants to shoot in Greenland rather than use CGI, and “Arctic cruise liners need to be reserved a year in advance.”

“Die, My Love” was only Ramsay’s fifth film — she’s been making features for over 27 years now. The other titles in her filmography are “Ratcatcher,” “Morvern Callar,” “We Need to Talk About Kevin,” and “You Were Never Really Here.” It sure looks like another one will be coming sooner rather than later.