Luca Guadagnino has shot a movie every summer since 2021 — that’s quite the stat. Five straight summers in production, showcasing just how prolific he’s become: “Bones and All,” “Challengers,” “Queer,” “After the Hunt,” and “Artificial.”
That streak has ended. Guadagnino hasn’t shot anything this year, and that’s despite being attached to almost ten different projects, including, most notoriously, “American Psycho.”
Yes, a few years after its announcement, Lionsgate’s “American Psycho,” directed by Guadagnino, is still in development. A handful of actors have been rumored to play Patrick Bateman, with the trades even going as far as to report that Austin Butler was in talks. It now looks as though Butler isn’t involved anymore, or at least we think.
Scott Z. Burns is adapting Bret Easton Ellis’ 1991 novel, which shocked readers with its graphic depictions of a Manhattan psychopath. The story seemingly remains the same: Bateman, an investment banker by day and remorseless killer by night, juggling a meticulously curated life while indulging in violent fantasies after dark.
It now seems, via The InSneider, that Guadagnino continues to refine the script while searching for a lead actor — a handful of A-listers have reportedly turned the Patrick Bateman role down. Casting has reportedly been difficult, and Guadagnino, alongside Burns, has revised the screenplay multiple times in response to feedback from actors.
If Guadagnino’s vision ultimately doesn’t come together, and time surely is running out, Lionsgate might move on from the Italian filmmaker, as, according to the report, they have already identified possible replacements.
Guadagnino is reportedly facing a challenging stretch, and his script allegedly delays Patrick Bateman’s full psycho emergence until very late in the story. While he continues fine-tuning the screenplay, there is growing speculation that the studio could eventually lose patience and move forward without him.
Hey, IP is IP, and “American Psycho” is something the studio is very interested in rebooting.
Social media sleuths have thrown around every name to play Bateman — Austin Butler, Jacob Elordi, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Connor Storrie — but as of now, they have yet to lock an actor for the role. It doesn’t help that the other film Guadagnino intended to shoot while “American Psycho” was in limbo, is “Separate Rooms,” which lost one of its two lead actors, Josh O’Connor. Lea Seydoux seemingly remains attached.
At some point, “American Psycho” was actually going to shoot this summer. Guadagnino tapped Hoyte van Hoytema as his DP on the film, which recently had a draft turned in by writer Burns — said to be the third submitted since work began on the project. Those plans clearly weren’t met, and we’re looking at yet another delay.
Michel Hazanavicius, the Oscar-winning director of "The Artist" and a Cannes competition regular, has just wrapped production on his latest film, "The Third Hand."