Nathaniel Hawthorne’s 1835 short story Wakefield is getting a film adaptation, and Bryan Cranston is set to star. The actor shared the news during a recent interview on The Howard Stern Radio Show, reports Variety.
The story will center on Cranston’s character, a married lawyer who suffers from a nervous breakdown after seeing a raccoon in his attic. He’ll spend several months up there because of it, and also somehow form a romantic relationship with a younger woman. Cranston didn’t share details as to how the two will meet, but it seems safe to say that he’ll have to leave the attic to meet her. Who knows, though?
Wakefield deviates from the short story, which centers on a man who leaves his wife for years, yet only goes a few blocks away where he can still keep tabs on her. Robin Swicord is writing and directing, which is fitting given that she’s known for her literary adaptations. She has previously worked on Memoirs of a Geisha, Matilda, and Little Women, all of which are based on novels, plus The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, which is loosely based on a short story.
Cranston says he agreed to work for the minimum salary allowed under the SAG-AFTRA master contract. The project certainly isn’t his only paycheck, of course. Cranston is executive producing Amazon’s upcoming series Sneaky Pete, set to premiere in 2016. Additionally, his most recent film, Trumbo, hit theaters on Nov. 6, and he voices a character on the Crackle stop-motion animated comedy SuperMansion. He also currently has multiple films due out next year, including The Infiltrator and In Dubious Battle.
Bonnie Curtis (Minority Report) and Julie Lynn will produce via Mockingbird Pictures, along with Elliot Webb. Curtis and Lyn previously produced Last Days in the Desert, which stars Ewan McGregor.
