The next film from Nebraska director Alexander Payne is a go. Downsizing now has backing from Megan Ellison’s Annapurna Pictures and three more starts have joined the project, which already features Matt Damon and Reese Witherspoon.
Just days after Witherspoon boarded the film, which will reunite her with her Election director, Deadline reported that Annapurna has agreed to finance. The label confirmed the news by retweeting stories about Downsizing.
Alec Baldwin, Neil Patrick Harris and Jason Sudeikis will co-star in the film, which Damon joined in November.
The script was written by Payne with Jim Taylor and both are co-producing with Jim Burke and Ellison. The movie is about a man who decides that he will have a better life if he shrinks.
Downsizing likely won’t be out until Christmas 2017, since Damon has to make a new Bourne movie with Paul Greengrass for Universal first.
Payne’s last film, Nebraska, was a small B&W production released by Paramount, but was nominated for Best Picture. In fact, all of Payne’s last three films - including The Descendants and Sideways - have been nominated for Best Picture. He won Oscars for the scripts for both Descendants and Sideways.
As for Anapurna, the label backed both Her and American Hustle in 2013. This year, the label is in the awards discussion thanks to Foxcatcher.
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