You might not think that a dystopian love story where people are condemned to become creatures in the woods if they don’t find a romantic partner would attract big names, but Dogtooth dup Yorgos Lanthimos and Efthymis Filippou have tuned their offbeat sensibility into projects that catch the eye. Colin Farrell and Rachel Weisz are the new additions to the pair’s latest, The Lobster.
Last October, it was reported that Ben Whishaw, Jason Clarke and Lea Seydoux would all star in the film. The Wrap’s update on its progress still mentions Whishaw and Seydoux as part of the cast, but Clarke’s name doesn’t appear, which makes us think Farrell could be taking his place.
The film’s set in a dark near future world where single people of a certain age must find a partner within 45 days or else be turned into creatures and released into the woods. One man, threatened with the process, escapes into the woods rather than risk becoming fauna. It sounds like the worst version of online dating taken to an extraordinary degree, and shows a certain literalism to Friends' mantra about finding your lobster{
With Lanthimos and Filippou making their English-language debut on the movie, the cameras were set to roll this coming March in Ireland, though we don’t know if the actor-juggling means the schedule has shifted. Either way, the rights will be for sale in Berlin at the European Film Market, and the presence of Farrell and Weisz in particular should held boost interest.