If nothing else, the theme song to The Beverly Hillbillies helped educate some of us that “black gold” is another word for oil. It’s a useful lesson given that Antonio Banderas has just signed on to Jean-Jacques Annaud’s latest, which bears that exact name.
Black Gold is set in the 1930s, a time when oil was just being discovered in the Arabian kingdoms. Naturally, such a valuable resource caused exactly the same reaction it tends to today – people fought over it. But then came a young, dynamic leader who united the various factions and rulers in the struggle to work together.
Annaud has a great cast already in place, with A Prophet’s Tahar Rahim, Slumdog Millionaire’s Freida Pinto and the man, the legend, the (floating) head of the class, Mark Strong.
Menno Meyes wrote the script, and Annaud will kick off shooting next week in Tunisia. We just hope they keep Daniel Day-Lewis away from the place. Is anyone else suddenly craving a milkshake?
There’s no word on exactly when it might appear, but Deadline reports the producers are aiming for late 2011.