Paul Thomas Anderson and Philip Seymour Hoffman reunite for religious film
I try not to get too fanboy when writing about things I really enjoy. I know, I know, it’s “bad journalism.” But sometimes I say shut the hell up rules and let me go nuts. If I were to refer to P.T. Anderson (now going by Paul Thomas) using Kanye West as my influence, I’d say, “you’re a great director and all, BUT P.T. ANDERSON IS THE GREATEST DIRECTOR OF ALL TIME!” I can’t tell you how often I quote his second feature, BOOGIE NIGHTS, and I can’t count the number of times I’ve seen MAGNOLIA. So when new information on his upcoming projects pop up, I get really, really excited.
With that unecessary introduction, here’s the good stuff. According to Variety, Anderson’s next film will be about a “founder of a new religious organization in the 1950s… ‘the Master,’ as in ‘master of ceremonies,’ a charismatic intellectual who hatches a faith-based organization that begins to catch on in America in 1952.” To sweeten this news, the Master will be played the extremely talented Philip Seymour Hoffman. Hoffman’s only had supporting roles in Anderson’s films and didn’t appear in his last, THERE WILL BE BLOOD, this will break that tradition by giving him the lead role.
Also to be noted, the film will not be defame self-started religions, but rather explore “the need to believe in a higher power, the choice of which one to embrace and the point at which a belief system graduates into a religion.”
As of this moment, Universal owns the rights to the projected $35 million budget film, and the official title hasn’t been announced.
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