Roberto Benigni Confirmed For Woody Allen’s Next
AsWoody Allenprepares to arrive in Cannes with his latest filmMidnight in Paris, he is confirming some casting reports about his next film, to be shot in Rome, which he calls “a comic picture, an out-and-out comedy.” Speaking toUSA Todayhe offered that quote, said that reports pegging the film’s title asThe Wrong Picturewere, uh, wrong, and confirming that he would indeed appear in the film.
And he also confirmedDeadline’s report thatRoberto Benigniwould play a part in the movie. We don’t know what that part will be, but he’ll joinPenelope Cruz,Ellen Page,Jesse EisenbergandAlec Baldwin.
Roberto Benigni built a big European audience with comic roles in Italy and a small US audience thanks to appearances in films likeDown By Law. But he broke into the mainstream in a big way with comic Holocaust filmLife is Beautiful, earning a spot in Oscar highlight reels for decades to come with his seat-climbing antics after winning Best Actor for that movie, which also took home Best Foreign Language Film.
But he followed that 1997 film withPinocchioin 2002, which almost no one saw, andThe Tiger and the Snowin 2005, which no one saw at all. So this Woody Allen comedy will essentially be his return to the screen after many years, as far as many audiences are concerned. He is a presence that tends to divide audiences — I got used to him early on thanks to a deep love forDown By Law(much of hisdialogue, especially hisexplanation of why he’s jailed, still makes me laugh) but I can see why he irritates many. But he might be ideal for a Rome-set comedy, especially with Woody Allen at the helm.
