UPDATE: Variety is reporting that Rachel Weisz (The Bourne Legacy) is currently in negotiations to join De Niro and Pattinson in the film.
Though his buzzy film Clouds of Sils Maria, which stars Juliette Binoche, Kristen Stewart and Chloë Grace Moretz, isn’t due to open stateside until December 1st, acclaimed French director Olivier Assayas is already hard at work putting the pieces together for his next project: a “sophisticated” heist action-thriller called Idol’s Eye. Now, it has been announced that Oscar winner Robert De Niro and Cosmopolis star Robert Pattinson will be toplining the cast.
Plot details are being kept mostly under wraps, but we do know a little bit about Idol’s Eye thanks to comments made by Pattinson to French publication La Nouvel Observateur. According to him, the film is a ’70s-set gangster movie that focuses on a group of thieves who rob a porn store, only to realize that the store is a front for the Chicago mafia. As for the title, the Idol’s Eye is the name of a famous diamond.
De Niro is widely respected and thought of as one of the most talented actors of his generation, so it’s exciting to see that he has jumped on board Idol’s Eye. And though Pattinson is still best known for his role as a sullen vampire in the Twilight franchise, he has also been doing strong work since that series concluded. He toplines David Michôd’s post-apocalyptic The Rover, which releases in June, and has a supporting role in David Cronenberg’s biting satire Maps to the Stars, expected to arrive stateside this fall.
In addition to those promising projects, Pattinson also has two exciting films in the can: Werner Herzog’s Gertrude Bell biopic Queen of the Desert, and James Dean biopic Life (in which he plays Life Magazine photographer Dennis Stock). Idol’s Eye, then, is just one more intriguing project on his schedule.
Idol’s Eye hails from Benaroya Pictures and is aiming to begin principal photography this October in Chicago and Toronto. We’ll keep you posted when we hear more.
Published: May 28, 2014 10:19 am