Marvel vet Scarlett Johansson is officially making her feature directorial debut in the upcoming drama film тιтled, Eleanor the Great.
Per Variety, Johansson has finally found the first four actors who will be joining the cast of Eleanor the Great, with fellow Oscar nominee June Squibb set for the тιтular role of Eleanor Morgenstein. This marks the Nebraska actor’s latest movie project as the lead, since starring in the upcoming comedy movie Thelma, which had its world premiere at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. Chiwetel Ejiofor (Doctor Strange), Erin Kellyman (The Falcon and the Winter Soldier) and Jessica Hecht (Friends, Breaking Bad) have also been cast in the project, which hails from TriStar Pictures and Sony Pictures Classics.
Marvel president Kevin Feige ᴀssures MCU fans that a new project produced by Black Widow star Scarlett Johansson is still in the works.
The official synopsis of Eleanor the Great reads, “the story follows a 90-year-old woman trying to rebuild her life after the death of her best friend. As a result, she moves back to New York City after living in Florida for decades.” Further details about Ejiofor, Kellyman and Hecht’s characters are still being kept under wraps. Hecht previously worked with Johansson in the 2010 Broadway revival of A View from the Bridge, which earned the latter her first Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play.
Scarlett Johansson Makes Her Directorial Debut
Johansson will be directing from a screenplay written by Tory Kamen. It is produced by the Black Widow star, Jonathan Lia, and Keenan Flynn for These Pictures, alongside Pinky Promise’s Kara Durrett and Jessamine Burgum, and Maven Screen Media’s Celine Rattray and Trudie Styler. Wayfarer Studios’ Justin Baldoni, Steve Sarowitz, Jamey Heath and Andrew Calof are also serving as executive producers, along with Content Engineer’s Ezra Gabay and Raj Kishor Khaware.
Sofia Coppola addresses the connection between the characters of Scarlett Johansson and Rooney Mara, in Lost in Translation and Her, respectively.
Scarlett Johansson’s Future Projects
Besides preparing for her feature directorial debut, Johansson is also currently busy working on her other acting and producing projects, including two movies set for 2024 releases. After appearing in her first Wes Anderson film, Asteroid City, she will next be seen starring opposite Channing Tatum in the upcoming romantic comedy Project Artemis, which is expected to arrive in theaters on July 12. Johansson will also be lending her voice to an Autobot in Paramount Pictures’ animated prequel Transformers One, which premieres on Sept. 13. This film will reunite her with fellow Avengers co-star Chris Hemsworth.
In addition, Johansson is also attached for the leading role in Prime Video’s upcoming series adaptation of John Katzenbach’s 1992 novel Just Cause, which just recently enlisted American Fiction director Cord Jefferson to write the reimagining. Last Nov. 16, Johansson confirmed that her long-in-development Tower of Terror remake is still moving forward at Disney. “Now that the writers’ strike is all over with, we’re finally able to dive back into polishing up this script. It’s a mᴀssive, huge undertaking,” she said.
