After working with the Disney-owned studio on his Oscar-nominated Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Martin McDonagh is teaming up with Searchlight Pictures (formerly Fox Searchlight) for his next project that will also reportedly reunite the 49-year-old director with In Bruges stars Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson, according to Deadline.
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The untitled project, on which McDonagh will write and direct, will be set on a remote Irish isle and will follow two lifelong friends who find themselves at a standstill when one abruptly ends their relationship that will have dire consequences for the both of them.
The film is reportedly aiming for a budget of around $20 million and is set to begin shooting this summer, with Film4 attached to produce and the financing having come from CAA Media Finance and Film4.
Farrell and Gleeson’s first time working with the Irish director came in 2008’s dark comedy In Bruges, which also marked his directorial debut, where the two starred as hitmen who are hiding in the titular Belgian city after the former botches a job. The latter is told by their boss to kill Farrell’s Ray, but upon learning he is suicidal from the consequences of the botched hit, he chooses to help keep his friend alive and the two must face their vicious boss, portrayed by Ralph Fiennes (No Time to Die).
In Bruges was a major success for the director globally, scoring rave reviews from critics and audiences and bringing in a strong $34.5 million at the box office on a budget of $15 million. It would also go on to be nominated for Best Original Screenplay at the 2009 Oscars and Best Picture — Musical or Comedy and two Best Actor nods at the Golden Globes, with Farrell taking home a statue for his performance.
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McDonagh would return four years later with the critically-lauded dark comedy crime thriller Seven Psychopaths, once again starring Farrell who led an ensemble cast that featured the likes of Sam Rockwell (Three Billboards), Christopher Walken (Wedding Crashers) and Woody Harrelson (Venom). Though not nominated for any Oscars or Globes, the film was another hit with critics and audiences alike, grossing over $33 million on an estimated $15 million budget.
His most recent effort, Three Billboards, saw him reunite with Rockwell and Harrelson and was led by Frances McDormand (Fargo) and once again was a critical and commercial smash, grossing over $160 million at the global box office and earning six Oscar nominations, including Best Picture. McDormand and Rockwell both took home Oscars for their performances in the crime drama while McDonagh took home Golden Globes for Best Motion Picture — Drama and Best Original Screenplay.
