Clint Eastwood has declared his intention to start shooting a second movie about the World War Two battle of Iwo Jima in March, intended as a follow-up “companion” piece to his currently-in-production Flags Of Our Fathers.
Where Flags focuses on the American soldiers who famously photographed while raising the stars-and-stripes on the pacific island, this next movie, entitled Red Sun, Black Sand, centres on the Japanese perspective. It will be scripted by Japanese-American scripter Iris Yamashita, although she’ll be working with Eastwood’s current fave collaborator Paul Haggis, who also wrote Flags. Ken Watanabe has been mentioned as the likely star.
The plan is for Flags to be released in the US in August, with Red Sun, Black Sand to follow later in the year. Eastwood’s also hoping to actually shoot the second movie on Iwo Jima itself, although he has yet to secure permission from the Japanese government. If all goes to plan, Clint has said, “I’ll be the only non-Japanese-speaking person within miles…”