Oliver Stone’s ‘White Lies’ Wraps Filming — Michael Douglas, Willem Dafoe, and Ellen Barkin Join Cast

In Oliver Stone’s own words, he is directing “one more ambitious narrative film” and went so far as to sign with Atlas Artists for representation in all areas to “make that dream a reality.”

Filming has wrapped on Oliver Stone’s “White Lies,” which began production in mid-March, and now we know a little more about the cast. Josh Hartnett had already been announced in the lead role, alongside Leila George. Rounding out the ensemble are Willem Dafoe, Michael Douglas, Ellen Barkin, Yvonne Chapman, and Homer Gere.

This is clearly a very personal project for Stone and could very well be the final narrative feature of his career. Bringing in Dafoe — who starred in “Platoon” and “Born on the Fourth of July” — and Douglas, who portrayed the iconic Gordon Gekko in “Wall Street,” feels like a full-circle moment for the filmmaker.

It also looks as though Douglas, who had announced his retirement in July 2025, will be back for one more movie, aiding his friend’s swan song. No complaints on my part, Douglas is an acting legend, and it will be a real pleasure to see him on the big screen one more time.

“White Lies” is a project Stone has been trying to make for more than a decade, with Benicio del Toro once attached to the lead role. It fell apart numerous times before European backers finally stepped in last year to secure financing for Stone’s passion project, which was shot in Thailand, Rome, and Bulgaria. The production lasted nearly three months.

Stone, 79, writes and directs “White Lies,” which follows Hartnett as the child of divorced parents who now finds himself repeating their mistakes in his own marriage and relationship with his troubled son. Feeling trapped, he embarks on a lust-filled quest for freedom, only to become even more adrift. His path changes when he meets a woman whose life is the opposite of his own.

Stone has not directed a narrative feature since 2016’s “Snowden,” a hiatus of more than a decade and the longest gap between narrative films in his career. He has admitted to struggling to secure financing over the last 10 years, suggesting he had been “blacklisted” from Hollywood because of his 2017 documentary series about Vladimir Putin.

From 1986 through 1997, Stone was a creative force to be reckoned with: “Salvador” (’86), “Platoon” (’86), “Wall Street” (’87), “Born on the Fourth of July” (’89), and “JFK” (’91). You could even extend that run to include “Natural Born Killers” (’94), which certainly has its admirers, “Nixon” (’95), and his underrated 1997 pulp-noir gem “U Turn.”