Credit Jurassic World Dominion
DeWanda Wise is going from crazed dinosaurs to a chilling mystery directed by Chris Pine.
The actress was one of the bright spots of Jurassic World: Dominion, where she portrayed a fearless air pirate named Kayla Watts. Now, Wise gets to show off more of her acting chops in a different kind of project, a mystery-comedy called Poolman, which Deadline reports as a mix of Big Lebowski and La La Land. Wise’s character is currently unknown. She joins a star-studded cast that includes Annette Bening, Danny DeVito, Ariana DeBose, and Jennifer Jason Leigh. Below is the official synopsis of the film:
“The film centers around Darren Barrenman, a hapless dreamer and would-be philosopher who spends his days looking after the pool of the Tahitian Tiki apartment block in sunny Los Angeles and crashing city council meetings with his neighbors Jack and Diane (DeVito, Bening). When Barrenman uncovers the greatest water heist in LA history since Chinatown, he makes uneasy alliances with a beautiful and connected femme fatale while following every lead he can with corrupt city officials, burned-out Hollywood types, and mysterious benefactors – all in the name of protecting his precious Los Angeles.”
Credit: She’s Gotta Have It
The film is currently in production, though a release date has yet to be confirmed. Poolman will mark the directorial debut of Chris Pine, who’s currently one of the main actors in Olivia Wilde’s Don’t Worry Darling. The veteran spoke to The Hollywood Reporter earlier this year about how the big project came together, “It was an idea that I had years ago. I was sitting with Patty Jenkins, shooting the shit, and it came up, and we started talking about ‘poolman’… and that made me laugh. I just followed that giggle, and that giggle led to an idea.” The actor is pretty busy these days thanks to his production company, Barry Linen Pictures, which he co-founded with the man he co-wrote Poolman with, Ian Gotler; Given his foray into the world of directing, Pine shared in his interview with Deadline what his inspiration is when it comes to his style
“I think my response is of osmosis for 20 years and just being around it in work every day. Part of work is watching the director work, so I’ve picked up some stuff. But yeah, I’ve talked to Ben Stiller, John Krazinski, David Russell. I talked to Michael B. Jordan, Donald Glover. I mean, I’ve talked to a fair amount of people about directing.
Credit: Jurassic World: Dominion
I mean, at the end of the day, you just have to jump into the muck and everybody’s advice is fantastic, but it’s like if people ask me advice as an actor, there is no way. You got to figure out your own way. A lot of this stuff has been really helpful. I’ve also taken notes from Krazinski that I love, who’s a complete f*cking mensch, who spent two and a half, three hours on the phone with me being just like a Ph.D. course in filmmaking. In fact, turns out that Michael B. talked to David the same way. David is wonderful that way with young directors. So yeah, I will take all the advice I can get. I can stand behind two things. One of which is like, I’ve lived with this now for two years of having written it and rewritten it, probably three-plus years of having lived with the idea of it.”
Given the huge names attached to the cast, this could turn out to be one hell of a film. Patty Jenkins is also a part of this project; however, but only as a producer. This will be the fourth collaboration for Jenkins and Pines, following Wonder Woman, Wonder Woman 1984, and I Am the Night.
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