Jack O’ Connell & Julia Roberts could join Money Monster with George Clooney

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Jodie Foster’s upcoming MONEY MONSTER continues to take shape with the possibility of two more names being added to the project. Jack O’Connell who will star in Angelina Jolie’s UNBROKEN next month and just last week landed the lead role in Terry Gilliam’s DON QUIXOTE is now up for a role in Fosters first directorial effort since THE BEAVER in 2011. The other name looking at joining is Julia Roberts who would be in familiar company with the previously-attached George Clooney as they both starred in the OCEANS 11 series.

According to Variety, MONEY MONSTER focuses on a stock picker who is held hostage on TV by a man who lost his money after following the tout’s advice — and threatens to kill him if the cameras are turned off. It’s a fast-paced, character-driven thriller written by Jamie Linden (WE ARE MARSHALL) who took on an earlier draft by Alan DiFiore and Jim Kouf. While there is a chance the script had some changes, the original story would have Clooney star as Lee Gates, a bombastic television stock huckster, whose runs the TV program "Money Monster", Roberts would play the producer, Nancy Fenn, while O'Connell would play Kyle Budwell, a blue collar man pushed to his limits who serves as the story's antagonist.

This reminds me a little of MAD CITY with the majority of the drama unfolding on television; it didn’t really work well for that movie but with the right cast and script, this could make for a thrilling watch. I’ve always wished Foster would direct more often, her films don’t seem to get the recognition they deserve and most fall under the radar right away. THE BEAVER had some difficulty finding an audience due to the public mess behind the scenes with Mel Gibson but it’s actually a great little movie. I would keep my eyes out for MONEY MONSTER getting some of that much deserved attention.