Deadline reports that Angelina Jolie and Halle Berry are set to join forces for Maude v Maude, an action thriller which sparked a multi-studio bidding war over the weekend.
Warner Bros. came out the victor in the battle of Maude v Maude. Roseanne Liang (Shadow in the Cloud) will direct the movie from a script by Scott Mosier (The Grinch). Not much is known about the project, but an insider described it as a “Bond vs Bourne” type of action thriller. I can get onboard with that. While both Angelina Jolie and Halle Berry have their share of action movies under their belts, this will be the first time that the two actors have worked together.
Of course, Angelina Jolie played Lara Croft in Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and Lara Croft: Tomb Raider – The Cradle of Life, but her other action credits include Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Wanted, Salt, and more. Halle Berry played Jinx in Die Another Day as well as Storm in the X-Men movies, and she was also featured in John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum.
Warner Bros. Pictures co-studio heads Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy were keen to snag Maude v Maude. Deadline’s report states that Warner Bros. was aggressive in the bidding war, and wound up putting in an “impressive eight-figure” bid to bring the project home.
In addition to Maude v Maude, Angelina Jolie is said to be teaming up with Pablo Larraín (Spencer) to star in Maria, a biopic celebrating the final days of Maria Callas, who is considered to be one of the greatest opera singers to ever grace the stage. “I take very seriously the responsibility to Maria’s life and legacy. I will give all I can to meet the challenge,” Jolie said in a statement. “Pablo Larraín is a director I have long admired. To be allowed the chance to tell more of Maria’s story with him, and with a script by Steven Knight, is a dream.” Halle Berry has several projects on her slate, including sci-fi adventure The Mothership, which is supposed to be released on Netflix later this year. She also starred in Our Man From Jersey alongside Mark Wahlberg, an action thriller which is also destined for Netflix.