Tim Burton Announces Christoph Waltz And Amy Adams As Leads In New Film

 

 

Tim Burton managed to restore some faith in himself by releasing Frankenweenie last year, so one would hope his return to live action should be all the more triumphant. So far, it’s looking good.

Big Eyes will be based on the true story of Walter and Margaret Keane who are most famous for their eerie portraits of children with gigantic eyes.  As reported at the time, the story goes that Walter would lock his shy wife, Margaret, in a room and force her to paint. He would then sell her work on under his own name, reaping the fame and glamour that came with it and appearing regularly on talk shows. It wasn’t until Margaret wanted to divorce from Walter that she spoke up, in order to claim her share of the profits.  She was finally recognised for being the hand behind the paintbrush, exposing the exploitation she had faced from her husband. The children in the pictures were often seen looking depressed or even crying which only added to the darkness and misery that shrouded Margaret’s life up until her divorce. Sounds like a perfect vessel for Tim Burton to do what Tim Burton does best.

Burton has his own personal ties with Margaret Keane having requested she paint a portrait of his then wife Lisa-Marie back in the late nineties, so his affinity with her story will hopefully fuel his fire to make something decent. Plus, he’s reteaming with Ed Wood writers Larry Karaszewski and Scott Alexander who have had the story written and ready for filming for the last few years.

Two other additions for this already dreamy grouping of names are those of Christoph Waltz and Amy Adams who have been announced as playing the tumultuous couple. Waltz is on the continuing rise with his recent Academy Award win for Django Unchained, while Adams will also be joining him in the sequel to the Muppets movie; The Muppets…Again! in 2014. Throw in a couple of Weinsteins behind the promotion and distribution and it would seem to be set for success!

Poor old Helena Bonham-Carter and Johnny Depp though, it seems they could finally be replaced as Burton favourites which is the most refreshing piece of movie news I’ve heard all year, let’s just hope it stays that way.

There isn’t an announced release date yet, but stay tuned for more casting news as this project takes shape!