We all know that Steven Spielberg and Daniel Day-Lewis are total BFFs. Following the resounding success of Lincoln, which earned Mr. Day-Lewis yet another Oscar, they are now both considering a reunion for a very different type of American story in Thank You For Your Service.
The film is based on the novel by David Finkel and is about soldiers returning from the Iraq war and their difficulties in reintegrating with society. It’s a follow-up to his book The Good Soldiers, which followed the 2-16 Infantry Battalion on the frontlines in Baghdad, their problems and grueling work, and how they dealt with being key players in the fifteen month surge. Thank Your For Your Service focuses on some of the same men as they return home and have to deal with being back in civilian society, with PTSD and other challenges facing the servicemen who have seen extreme active conflict.
Spielberg is interested in making the film and he wants Daniel Day-Lewis to star. The script is currently being written by Jason Dean Hall for Warner Brothers. Dean Hall, by the way, is also behind Spielberg’s next project, American Sniper.
Thank You For Your Service would be a change of pace for the pairing of Day-Lewis and Spielberg, from the mythological Americana of Lincoln to the more personal tribulations of a returning war veteran. While this would violate Day-Lewis’s usual five year rule – he almost always take a five year break between gigs – there’s a good chance that Spielberg would be able to convince him.
Sounds like a great idea to me. Daniel Day-Lewis rarely fails to be brilliant in anything he sets his talents to, and he and Spielberg seem to work together quite well. I would definitely be up for them tackling an intimate personal drama.
What do you think of this reunion of actor and director for Thank You For Your Service? Let us know in the comments.
