Once upon a time (2012, to be exact), it looked like James Franco was going to take the part of famed photographer Robert Mapplethorpe in the biopic bearing his name. But since he's busy writing, directing and starring in 500 films for himself and others, someone had to take over. That someone is Matt Smith, with Girls' Zosia Mamet co-starring as musician Patti Smith, his one-time lover and closest friend.
Best known for his huge, stylized black and white portraits, pictures of nude men and women and images of flowers, Mapplethorpe became a lightning rod for controversy and criticism, especially over public funding for the arts and censorship. He was also credited with iconic images of other artists and musicians, including Andy Warhol, Debbie Harry, Grace Jones and Smith, whose album Horses uses one of his pictures.
Mapplethorpe died aged 42 in 1989 after suffering complications from AIDS. Before his death, he founded the Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation, which has since gone on to promote his work around the world and donated millions to fighting AIDS.
DIG and We Live In Public director Ondi Timoner has been attached to direct Mapplethorpe least since the Franco era. “After several years of developing this script and searching across the globe for the perfect talent to embody the rich and layered roles of visionary artists Robert Mapplethorpe and Patti Smith, I am ecstatic to have found Matt Smith and Zosia Mamet," she tells Deadline. "They will bring indelible passion, raw humanity, and authenticity to this timeless, inspiring story.” With the backing of the Mapplethorpe foundation, Timoner should at last be able to start filming in the summer.
Smith will next be seen in Pride And Prejudice And Zombies, which menaces our screens from February 11. He'll also be seen in Netflix's The Crown and pandemic thriller Patient Zero, headed our way on September 2. Mamet returns for season 5 of Girls, which should arrive on Sky Atlantic shortly after it launches on HBO, on February 21.