Novel adap Salmon Fishing In The Yemen has been drifting a bit since original director Bill Condon departed for Breaking Dawn, but it appears the project has a saviour in Lasse Hallström.
The Dear John and Chocolat director has signed up to steer the project. Meanwhile, the flick’s landed a trio of tantalising lead (Brit) actors, with Ewan McGregor, Emily Blunt and Kristin Scott Thomas all signing on for the fishy flick.
Adapted by Slumdog Millionaire ’s scribe Simon Beaufoy, Paul Torday’s original novel weaves political satire with the war in Iraq and the plot of a sheikh who is “really a mystic”.
Bueafoy’s celebrated script made the 2009 Brit List of unproduced screenplays, which bodes well for the adaptation.
McGregor would apparently play the role of Dr Alfred Jones, a London fisheries scientist who feels out of place (um, fish out of water?) among the other scientists. His relationship with wife Mary (Scott Thomas) is equally off colour.
Then Jones is sent off on a project to experiment with introducing salmon into Yemen (it’s unthinkable, apparently), where he meets Harriet (Blunt). Could this be the spiritual awakening he’s been waiting for?
Fancy going fishing with McGregor? Talk to us below...
