Damn! Ridley Scott sure know's how to put together a stellar cast. Although the director still has to finish up his period drama THE LAST DUEL, Deadline has reported that casting is well underway on his next project, GUCCI.
According to the outlet, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Adam Driver, Jared Leto, Jack Huston, and Reeve Carney are all in talks to join the cast of GUCCI. That's pretty damn impressive. Lady Gaga is already attached to star in the film as Patrizia Reggiani, the ex-wife of Maurizio Gucci, who was "tried and convicted of orchestrating her ex-husband's assassination on the steps of his office in 1995." Patrizia served 18 years in jail before being released in 2016. The project has been scripted by Roberto Bentivegna based on "The House of Gucci: A Sensational Story of Murder, Madness, Glamour, and Greed" by Sara Gay Forden. Production on GUCCI is slated to kick off once Ridley Scott completes shooting THE LAST DUEL.
A synopsis of "The House of Gucci" via Amazon:
In 1993, Gucci's financial partner, InvestCorp, forced Maurizio Gucci, the last of the Gucci family to run the Gucci Corporation, out for draining company coffers with extravagant business practices. However, on March 27, 1995, the Gucci heir was slain as he approached his office building. In 1998, his ex-wife Patrizia Reggiani Martinelli was sentenced to 29 years in prison, for arranging his murder. Did Patrizia murder her ex-husband because his spending was wildly out of control? Did she do it because her glamorous ex was preparing to marry his mistress, Paola Franchi? Or is there a possibility she didn't do it at all? The Gucci story is one of glitz, glamour, intrigue, the rise, near fall and subsequent resurgence of a fashion dynasty. Beautifully written, impeccably researched, and widely acclaimed, The House of Gucci will captivate readers with its page-turning account of high fashion, high finance, and heart-rending personal tragedy.
Speaking of THE LAST DUEL, the film is set in 14th century France and is said to be an epic tale of betrayal and justice which will be told from three distinct points of view, that of two knights (Matt Damon and Adam Driver), whose bond is tested by treachery, as well as a young woman (Jodie Comer) who is forced to navigate the brutal and oppressive culture of the era in order to survive. The film also stars Ben Affleck and production is expected to resume next week. THE LAST DUEL is currently set for an October 15, 2021 release.