Elle Fanning has been attached to star in How To Talk To Girls At Parties since last summer, and the rest of the cast are now receiving their invitations. Nicole Kidman is in "advanced talks", and looks likely to be joined by Matt Lucas and Ruth Wilson{
Rabbit Hole writer/director John Cameron Mitchell has been developing the film since 2010. It's based on a 2006 Neil Gaiman short story (which you can find in the Gaiman collection Fragile Things).
The original version involves two teenage boys who attend a party in 1970s London. While one of the friends has charm to spare and soon finds himself paired off, the other is much more awkward and has to figure out how to strike up conversations with the girls present. And, as it turns out, they’re not quite what they appear...
Mitchell wrote the screenplay with Philippa Goslett, shifting the focus to one boy, who sees music and art as a means of escape, and an alien girl looking to ditch her dull tour group and explore the place she has heard is the most dangerous in the galaxy – Croydon.
Kidman was Oscar nominated for her Rabbit Hole role, and sounds keen to work with Mitchell again. “Nicole responded very quickly and enthusiastically to the script when John sent it to her,” says producer Howard Gertler. “This is a story that appeals to teens and adults, something John and Neil Gaiman’s work also achieves, and that is why it’s such a good fit. John compares it to Romeo and Juliet, except instead of Montagues and Capulets we have punks and aliens!”
Shooting is set to get underway in the UK in the autumn.