Actor, writer and director John Turturro has not been shy about his driving desire to bring his Big Lebowski character Jesus Quintana back to screens in some fashion. It looks like he's finally doing it, as Birth.Movies.Death has heard that his latest project, called Going Places, is actually that very spin-off.
The new film, which apparently also features Bobby Cannavale, Audrey Tautou and Susan Sarandon, was pitched as ostensibly a remake of 1974 French comedy Les Valseuses. It starred Gerard Depardieu in the story of two aimless thieves who are known for stealing, fighting or charming people, and who somehow rope a woman into their criminal behaviour, competing to win her affection. It may in fact still be that, just with added Jesus: Turturro and Cannavale are reportedly the thieves (looks like Jesus has just gotten worse over time), with Tautou as their accomplice and Sarandon as a recently released prisoner who also joins them on the road.
Turturro has been shooting the film for a couple of weeks in New York, working from his script, but there has been no official confirmation on the details, so treat this as an interesting development, but still floating in the rumoursphere for now.
And don't got expecting the Coen brothers to be directly involved; despite their friend's enthusiasm, they've never jumped at the idea. "He talks incessantly about it," Ethan Coen said in 2013. "He even has the story worked out, which he's pitched to us a few times, but I can't really remember it. I don't see it in our future."
Going Places – assuming it keeps that title – has yet to lock in a distributor, but who wouldn't want to be the company that helps bring back The Jesus?