Steven Spielberg's next movie has added four new cast members to play fictionalized versions of his family members – Judd Hirsch, Jeannie Berlin, Robin Bartlett, and Jonathan Hadary are now on board.
Hirsch was nominated for an Academy Award for his role in the 1980 movie Ordinary People and is also known for starring in the sitcom Taxi. He was most recently seen alongside Adam Sandler in Uncut Gems. Berlin is also an Oscar-nominated actress – she received a nod for her role in 1972's The Heartbreak Kid – and she's recently had recurring roles in the TV shows Hunters and Succession.
Bartlett and Hadary have also had long and varied careers – Barlett has appeared in movies like Shutter Island and Inside Llewyn Davis, while Hadary has had roles in TV shows including Russian Doll, Veep, and Sex and the City. They join Michelle Williams and Paul Dano, who are playing roles inspired by Spielberg's parents, and Seth Rogen who's playing a character based on the director's favorite uncle.
The movie will be inspired by his experiences growing up in Arizona, which the director has often spoken about as being a big inspiration for his filmmaking. It doesn't have an official name yet, but it currently has the working title of The Fabelmans.
This will be the first time Spielberg has properly explored his early years on screen. The movie also marks the first time since 2001 that Spielberg will be involved in writing the screenplay for one of his movies – his last screenwriting venture was for AI: Artificial Intelligence. He's co-writing this movie with Tony Kushner, who he previously penned the Spielberg movies Lincoln and West Side Story.
Spielberg's last big-screen offering was 2018's Ready Player One, a sci-fi adventure movie based on Ernest Cline's young adult novel of the same name. His next movie is the aforementioned re-telling of the hit musical West Side Story starring Ansel Elgort and Maddie Ziegler, which is due to hit theaters this December.
While we wait for Spielberg's next project to arrive on the big screen, check out our list of all the upcoming movies to get excited about in 2021 and beyond.
