New film role : The Frontrunner (Gary Hart political drama)

[jo]

A new dramatic role...and once again, against type!

www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/hugh-jackman-play-gary-hart-jason-reitman-political-drama-1017163

Hugh Jackman to Play Gary Hart in Jason Reitman Political Drama (Exclusive)

12:52 PM PDT 6/27/2017 by Tatiana Siegel , Mia Galuppo




Hugh Jackman; Jason Reitman; Gary Hart


The 'Logan' star will portray the disgraced politician, who was considered the frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1988 when his campaign was rocked by revelations of an extramarital affair.

Hugh Jackman is hitting the campaign trail for Jason Reitman's The Frontrunner.

The Logan star will play disgraced politician Gary Hart, who 1988 was considered the frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination when his campaign was rocked by revelations of an extramarital affair with Donna Rice. The U.S. Senator from Colorado then dropped out of the race.

Reitman wrote the screenplay, which chronicles Hart's meteoric rise and dramatic fall. Massachusetts Gov. Mike Dukakis, who had been trailing Hart, wound up landing the Democratic nomination. He eventually lost to George Bush. But the Hart story proved to be a turning point in American politics and the media, ushering in the tabloid age, where personal indiscretions became fair game. Before Hart, the media turned a blind eye to the infidelities of politicians.

The Frontrunner would mark Reitman's return to political fare. His first film, Thank You for Smoking, offered a satirical look at Washington lobbyists. The Oscar-nominated director (Juno) is currently in post-production on the Charlize Theron starrer Tully, which was written by Diablo Cody.

He is repped by WME and Jackoway Tyerman.

Jackman starred in this year's X-Men solo outing Logan, which was a breakout hit for Fox, earning $618 million worldwide, despite an R rating. He will next be seen in The Greatest Showman, playing circus pioneer P.T. Barnum. Jackman is handled by WME and Sloane Offer.

Borys Kit contributed to this report.

[jo]

New York Times looks back and writes a full article more recently on Gary Hart --

www.nytimes.com/2014/09/21/magazine/how-gary-harts-downfall-forever-changed-american-politics.html?_r=0


Long but very informative backgrounder --

Magazine
How Gary Hart’s Downfall Forever Changed American Politics
By MATT BAISEPT. 18, 2014

[jo]

This is going to be another milestone in his career - a period when he would have portrayed three very different film personas!

*The final story in the WOLVERINE superhero saga (LOGAN)
*The musical biopic of an American icon in mass entertainment ( THE GREATEST SHOWMAN)
*The fall from grace of a political figure who could have been the World's most powerful man ( THE FRONTRUNNER)

His portfolio of cinematic roles is now becoming more and more remarkable!

Jo

[jo]

[jo]

Gary Hart

[mamaleh]

I remember when Hart, the guy to beat for the Dem nomination, was photographed with his mistress on his all-too appropriately named boat, the Monkey Business. Thus sank his candidacy.

Exciting news. Just wondering where this fits in with the Ferrari biopic, ODYSSEY, THE APOSTLE, and HJ's desire to get back on the boards.

Ellen

[jo]

The screenplay is ready for THE FRONTRUNNER. The lead star and the director are attached to the project. I suspect WME packaged the project proposal and probably have found or are looking for the funding. They have done this before. As of now, this seems to be the only project that is closest to filming. Lionsgate has not made any definitive announcement re THE ODYSSEY ( plus Hugh was just " in talks" then, at the very early stages). APOSTLE PAUL was announced in April 2015 but nothing has been heard of since then. I haven't read anything about the script being completed ( which was supposed to be started only then) but Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, his co-producers seem fairly busy. There was also a recent article that Warner Bros under a new CEO rethinking its slate of movies into the future...so nobody knows. Hugh has not been announced to be officially attached to ENZO FERRARI, plus Michael Mann was supposed to be working on another project ( Enzon Ferrari is supposed to be scheduled for 2018 filming).

As for Broadway -- it seems that those three plays he was doing the reading for did not seem to have generated a firm commitment from Hugh.

So, maybe this is the most advanced project for him?


Jo

[jo]

Variety has added another detail re THE FRONTRUNNER film project --

variety.com/2017/film/news/hugh-jackman-gary-hart-the-frontrunner-1202479910/

“The Frontrunner” is set up with Bron Studios

Bron Studios is based in British Columbia, Canada.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bron_Studios


Btw, the director ( who also writes screenplays) has been nominated twice for a Best Director Oscar ( Juno and Up In the Air).


Jo

[jo]

Anyone know what Deb teases Hugh about when she calls him " Senator" ?


Jo

[jo]

Deadline.com reports that Hugh Jackman is only in early talks about the role in THE FRONTRUNNER and no deal has been sealed yet!




deadline.com/2017/06/hugh-jackman-gary-hart-the-frontrunner-movie-jason-reitman-1202121008/

Hugh Jackman In Talks To Play Gary Hart In Jason Reitman’s ‘The Frontrunner’

by Patrick Hipes

June 27, 2017 2:55pm


Hugh Jackman is in early talks to play former senator and presidential candidate Gary Hart in The Frontrunner, a new film penned by Jason Reitman that Reitman will also direct. No deal has been sealed on Jackman yet, but the pic centers on the rise an fall of Hart, a Democratic Colorado senator who ran for president in 1984 and was considered a leading candidate in 1988 until media reports surfaced of womanizing and an alleged affair with a former Miss South Carolina Donna Rice. His poll numbers quickly fell behind eventual nominee Michael Dukakis, and Hart suspended his campaign soon after. Reitman and Helen Estabrook are producing it via their Right of Way Productions in partnership with Bron Studios’ Aaron L. Gilbert. Stay tuned.

So, THE FRONTRUNNER or BROADWAY ??

Ellen - he may still decide to tread the boards instead


Jo

[hughmanity]

I wonder why the discrepancy in reporting? 

Jun 27, 2017 19:22:03 GMT -5 jo said:

Deadline.com reports that Hugh Jackman is only in early talks about the role in THE FRONTRUNNER and no deal has been sealed yet!




deadline.com/2017/06/hugh-jackman-gary-hart-the-frontrunner-movie-jason-reitman-1202121008/

Hugh Jackman In Talks To Play Gary Hart In Jason Reitman’s ‘The Frontrunner’

by Patrick Hipes

June 27, 2017 2:55pm


Hugh Jackman is in early talks to play former senator and presidential candidate Gary Hart in The Frontrunner, a new film penned by Jason Reitman that Reitman will also direct. No deal has been sealed on Jackman yet, but the pic centers on the rise an fall of Hart, a Democratic Colorado senator who ran for president in 1984 and was considered a leading candidate in 1988 until media reports surfaced of womanizing and an alleged affair with a former Miss South Carolina Donna Rice. His poll numbers quickly fell behind eventual nominee Michael Dukakis, and Hart suspended his campaign soon after. Reitman and Helen Estabrook are producing it via their Right of Way Productions in partnership with Bron Studios’ Aaron L. Gilbert. Stay tuned.

So, THE FRONTRUNNER or BROADWAY ??

Ellen - he may still decide to tread the boards instead


Jo

[jo]

Could be one party talked to the producers/director who said it was in the bag

Maybe another talked to Hugh's agency and was told no signature has been affixed ( maybe a formality...or a negotiating point has not been fully settled... or maybe Hugh has not really said YES yet!).

Happens many times

Just like in investment banking - unless the formal signing happens( with all he lawyers around), it is still NO DEAL! That's how I got my Montblanc pen -- we were part of a group that did an outside ( of the country) signing -- and because that stage is very important -- we were given Montblanc pens as commemorative gifts!


Jo

[jo]

On the other hand, EW reports that it is a done deal and filming is already scheduled later this year --

ew.com/movies/2017/06/27/hugh-jackman-gary-hart-jason-reitman-political-drama-frontrunner/

Did Gary Hart waste his shot at the presidency — or did America waste its chance of electing a wise but flawed man?

This is the question at the center of The Frontrunner, a new drama from director Jason Reitman that will star Hugh Jackman as former presidential candidate Gary Hart — the Democratic frontrunner in 1987 before news of an extramarital affair demolished his candidacy … and potentially denied the country of a leader known for his compassion, intellect, and charisma.


Hart foresaw the rising threat of Mideast terrorism and the diminishing of the Cold War, but he was blindsided by the incursion of tabloid TV journalism in the previously staid political media, which had typically looked the other way when it came to politicians’ personal lives.



The film is based on the book All the Truth Is Out: The Week Politics Went Tabloid by Matt Bai, who co-wrote the script with the Up in the Air and Young Adult filmmaker, and former Hillary Clinton spokesman Jay Carson, who is also a producer on House of Cards (and one of the inspirations for Ryan Gosling’s character in the 2011 political thriller Ides of March, based on a play by House of Cards creator Beau Willimon.) Jackman’s casting was first reported by The Hollywood Reporter.
Reitman tells EW the movie will explore the impact Hart’s candidacy “had on the evolving relationship between politics and the media.”

“Like anyone, I look at the political landscape right now and just wonder how we got here. There isn’t any one answer, but Matt Bai’s book about the Hart candidacy raised interesting questions and offered a thread I wanted to pull,” Reitman says.
RELATED: 5 High-Grossing Page-to-Screen Adaptations


Hart was a Colorado senator who had a strong lead in the polls and an easy way with everyday voters when news reports broke about his affair with model Donna Rice. A notorious photo of the two of them at a yacht party, with her sitting on his lap and him wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with the phrase “Monkey Business” (which was the name of the boat), annihilated any talk of policy or vision for the country.

In his 1987 speech announcing the end of his candidacy, Hart foresaw a time when good politicians who were imperfect declined to run, and awful people who were good at creating skepticism and activating the worst in people rose to the fore.
“We’re all going to have to seriously question the system for selecting our national leaders, for it reduces the press of this nation to hunters and Presidential candidates to being hunted,” Hart said. “Too much of it is just a mockery, and if it continues to destroy people’s integrity and honor, then that system will eventually destroy itself.”


The Frontrunner is still casting other major roles, with plans to begin shooting in September.

It’s being produced independently by Aaron Gilbert (Fences), Helen Estabrook (Whiplash), and Reitman through Gilbert’s production company Bron Studios.

They previously worked together on Reitman’s upcoming motherhood drama Tully, out next April, which reteams him with Young Adult duo Charlize Theron and Juno screenwriter Diablo Cody.

[mamaleh]

Well, I like EW's version: filming set to begin in September. Hope that's so.

Ellen

[mamaleh]

Jun 27, 2017 17:57:41 GMT -5 jo said:

Anyone know what Deb teases Hugh about when she calls him " Senator" ?


Jo

Other than her liking his "stockbroker" (could apply to senator, too) look, Gary Hart, the character HJ may play in THE FRONTRUNNER, was a senator from Colorado. Maybe that's why?

Ellen

[jo]

She also calls him The Secret Economist ( because he probably has an ear for finance or he's good at wealth management -at least when it comes to real property ( didn't they sell an old flat in Melbourne, their flat in London when he was doing Oklahoma, or acquired other property in Melbourne and in Sydney plus their fab triplex acquired at the height of the recession ( and downturn in prices for real estate). And there was a more recent report that they have acquired property in East Hampton.

Or maybe he likes to do things on a grand scale ( such as film production ) instead of film directing ( which he says involves the nitty-gritty of daily/detail by detail decision-making). He says he is not good at doing house maintenance stuff - not interested in details. What I do remember was that there was a specific reason why she called him Senator ( and it was not so long ago) -- but maybe he has been looking at the script for THE FRONTRUNNER for sometime now Or maybe he likes to make political statements about how to run a country like Australia


Jo

[ruby]

Jun 27, 2017 23:54:47 GMT -5 jo said:

She also calls him The Secret Economist ( because he probably has an ear for finance or he's good at wealth management -at least when it comes to real property ( didn't they sell an old flat in Melbourne, their flat in London when he was doing Oklahoma, or acquired other property in Melbourne and in Sydney plus their fab triplex acquired at the height of the recession ( and downturn in prices for real estate). And there was a more recent report that they have acquired property in East Hampton.

Or maybe he likes to do things on a grand scale ( such as film production ) instead of film directing ( which he says involves the nitty-gritty of daily/detail by detail decision-making). He says he is not good at doing house maintenance stuff - not interested in details. What I do remember was that there was a specific reason why she called him Senator ( and it was not so long ago) -- but maybe he has been looking at the script for THE FRONTRUNNER for sometime now Or maybe he likes to make political statements about how to run a country like Australia


Jo

The Senetor reference always struck me as a nod to his diplomatic speak. Always appealing to the local audience. Finding the balance in the way he speaks to avoid controversy. She said it during that clip of the Jackman Furness foundation that was recently dug up again.

[jo]

Very sensible explanation!

[jo]

IMDB lists the movie as now under Pre-Production.

Hugh has not been officially confirmed for the role but is he now in preparations for it ??

Is he in Hollywood now? Someone tweeted that his Dad was a flight attendant on a plane bound for LA, with Hugh on it. His Instagram showing palm trees could very well have been a photo in LA? And now this newest photo upload showing off his new hair ( and maybe makeup) with famous Makeup and Hairstyle expert Jerry Popolis. Is this is a hair and makeup test with how he could look closer to Gary Hart...or is this for something else?

http://instagram.com/p/BWi2HN_DIPo

[jo]

Hey, they're crewing up!

www.imdb.com/title/tt7074886/fullcredits?ref_=tt_cl_sm#cast

It looks like director/screenwriter Jason Reitman has chosen some of his JUNO co-creatives to work on THE FRONTRUNNER. JUNO was nominated for an Oscar Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Actress ( Ellen Page).

Did someone say that it is scheduled to start filming in September, in Vancouver ?


Jo

[jo]

There are also mentions of other filming locations ( outside shots...or tax filming privileges ?) other than at Bron Studios in Vancouver --

www.imdb.com/title/tt7074886/locations?ref_=ttco_sa_5

Atlanta, Savannah, Georgia, USA

[jo]

If Hugh is going to play the title role, this is going to be a new direction in his movie career. He rarely plays real-life modern characters ( except for Prisoners/Deception/Someone Like You) and will likely relish tackling the challenge of portraying a controversial well-known ( in his time) character. The film subject will likely be interesting because of its historical perspective and the human interest element.

This is " high drama", which has been a preference emphasis of the AMPAS in the past. Who knows - maybe the genre will continue to attract Oscar voters into the future?


Hope there will be official announcements soon.

Jo

[mamaleh]

That haircut doesn't look like anything like I remember Gary Hart's, but then again it's been a while. Could be HJ is doing hair and makeup tests for THE FRONTRUNNER or maybe the "do" has nothing to do with the film. We'll see.

Ellen

[jo]

He didn't look like Barnum either

Not the face, nor the hairstyle...and even more so, not the portliness!

Yet, there has been not one comment on the various feedback sections where anyone complained about or noted the dissimilarity

Of course that slice of history was in the mid-1850's onward.


While THE FRONTRUNNER timeline will be of more recent memory.

Maybe they will just adopt a look that is distinct from his other more recent film roles -- assuming that he is undergoing preparations for THE FRONTRUNNER

Jo

[jo]

There has been no denial about Hugh's casting news, so presumably this is a GO project for him in the fall.



In the meantime the film project is busy crewing up. No announcement yet as to the rest of the cast.

www.imdb.com/title/tt7074886/fullcredits?ref_=tt_cl_sm#cast

Key creatives ( Cinematography/Production Design/First Assistant Director) came from director Jason Reitman's JUNO team ( JUNO was Oscar-nominated for Best Picture/Best Director/Best Actress for Ellen Page).