Though the book it’s based on burned up the New York Times Best Seller list when it was released back in 2009, director James Gray has been finding it surprisingly hard to get traction on a film adaptation of David Grann’s The Lost City of Z. Benedict Cumberbatch signed on for the lead role of explorer Percy Fawcett earlier this fall, but not much other information about the status of the project has emerged since. Today, however, Screen Daily announced that Robert Pattinson has joined the cast of the film in a major role.
Pattinson’s involvement was unveiled during this week’s American Film Market, and Screen Daily revealed the casting in their first AFM-centric print issue of the year.
The film has had a long road to the big screen but with Pattinson and Cumberbatch both on board, I can’t imagine that The Lost City of Z will collapse at this point. The project was previously in development over at Paramount Pictures before pay disputes and then-star Brad Pitt’s interest in Andrew Dominik’s Killing Them Softly led to the film flatlining.
Now, Pitt’s own production company, Plan B Entertainment, has committed to producing duties, and Panorama Media has agreed to finance and sell rights for the film. It looks like all the pieces are falling into place for The Lost City of ZÂ to shoot early next year.
Pattinson’s role is as of yet unclear, though I would predict that he will portray Raleigh Rimmell, a close friend of Fawcett’s son who accompanies the explorer on his journey into the Amazon. The role of Jack Fawcett is also still open, but I can’t imagine that Gray would expect audiences to buy Pattinson as Cumberbatch’s son.
The Lost City of ZÂ centers on Colonel Percy Harrison Fawcett, a British soldier-turned-explorer who becomes obsessed with the idea that an ancient civilization exists deep within the Amazon. Fawecett ventures into the deadly Amazon many times on various expeditions before funding eventually dries up. Convinced that the lost city, which he dubs Z, still exists, Fawcett undertakes one final adventure into the Amazon, bringing with him only his eldest son Jack and one of Jack’s closest friends. None of them are ever seen again.
Do you approve of Pattinson’s casting for this historical adventure film? Are you excited for The Lost City of Z? Let us know in the comments section!
