Todd Haynes' latest, Carol, is an adaptation of Patricia Highsmith's novel The Price Of Salt and it's gathering a mighty assembly of actresses. Rooney Mara is the latest to sign up, stepping up to replace Mia Wasikowska and join Cate Blanchett in the 1950s-set lesbian love story.
Carol is Haynes' first film since 2007's I'm Not There, but he's clearly kept his ears to the ground for up-and-coming talent. “We're over the moon to have Rooney on board," he said in a statement. "I've been a tremendous admirer of her work from the beginning, so the thought of bringing her together with Cate onscreen is thrilling to say the least.”
"It's a testament to Todd Haynes as a director and the quality of the script that we have managed to attract this exciting calibre of actor," added Number 9 Films' Elizabeth Karlsen, who is producing with official **Empire **hero Stephen Woolley.
That script, adapted by Phyllis Nagy, is set in '50s New York and revolves around a girl in her 20s slogging through a job in a department store (Mara) and a wife trapped in a loveless, unfulfilling, but wealthy marriage (Blanchett). Echoes of Haynes' terrific Douglas Sirk homage **Far From Heaven **in theme, if not setting.
Shooting on **Carol **is scheduled to start in spring 2014. The Weinstein Company picked up US distribution rights at Cannes this year, so expect to hear plenty more about it.