Stephen Fry has been trying to bring his semi-autobiographical novel The Liar to screens for more than a decade now. It's finally about to start production next month with Asa Butterfield starring, and Jeff Goldblum is the latest to hop aboard.
Tony Hagger wrote the adaptation and is directing the film, which will be an LGBTQ+ coming-of-age spy caper detailing the reckless, irreverent life of Adrian Healey (Butterfield) as he negotiates school and Cambridge university. It is at Cambridge that Adrian meets the mysterious professor of English Trefusis (Goldblum), who may or may not be a spy and may or may not have recruited Adrian.
“I hiccuped with delight when I heard that Jeff Goldblum had accepted the role of Donald Trefusis,” Fry tells Deadline. “That uniquely perfect mixture of authority, eccentricity, intelligence, humour and charm is just what the character calls for... hurrah!”