Fresh off of the release of The Midnight Sky, George Clooney is preparing to step into the director's chair once again for The Tender Bar, a drama based on the J.R. Moehringer memoir of the same name. Ben Affleck is already slated to star in the film and it has now been announced that Tye Sheridan will be joining him.
The Tender Bar is a coming-of-age tale of a young man who seeks refuge and father figures at his uncle's bar following the disappearance of his father, a New York City disc jockey. Tye Sheridan is slated to play the young man, while Ben Affleck will play his uncle. William Monahan (The Departed) has penned the script for the project, which was once slated to be helmed by Ted Melfi (Hidden Figures) at Sony.
Tye Sheridan was recently seen in The Night Clerk, Dark Phoenix, and Ready Player One, and speaking of the latter film, author Ernest Cline released the sequel last year. "Days after OASIS founder James Halliday’s contest, Wade Watts makes a discovery that changes everything," reads the novel's synopsis. "Hidden within Halliday’s vaults, waiting for his heir to find, lies a technological advancement that will once again change the world and make the OASIS more wondrous — and addictive — then even Wade dreamed possible. With it comes a new riddle and a new quest, a last Easter egg from Holiday, hinting at a mysterious prize, and an unexpected, impossibly powerful, new and dangerous rival awaits, one who will kill millions to get what he wants. Wade’s life and the future of the OASIS are again at stake, but this time, the fate of humanity also hangs in the balance." The first novel was adapted into a feature-film directed by Steven Spielberg, and although it had its detractors, the film was largely considered to be a critical and commercial success. Cline has said that a sequel is in the early stages of development, and Sheridan has previously said that he'd be ready to return if it happens.
You know, 'Is there going to be sequel?' And I think everybody's well aware that Ernie Cline is releasing a Ready Player Two, the novel. You know, but people keep asking me and I would love to have an answer for you and I think people, you know, will and can speculate all they want, but I don't really know what the plan is yet. I have my fingers crossed and, of course, I think it's a great and I loved working on that film, so yeah, I hope, I hope we get to do another.
Tye Sheridan's next project is Voyagers, a sci-fi film written and directed by Neil Burger which follows a crew of astronauts on a multi-generational mission who descend into paranoia and madness, not knowing what is real or not. The film was slated to hit theaters last year, but was pushed back to 2021 due to the pandemic.