Josh Hutcherson has been selected as one the cast members of the upcoming James Franco project The Disaster Artist — a professed “buddy comedy” that will tell the story of one of the worst movies of all time.
In the film, Josh will be portraying a real life actor, but not one you’ve probably ever heard of. The James Franco-led project will follow the process behind The Room , a 2003 motion picture that has been derided as one the absolute worst pieces of art ever put to celluloid, per The Hollywood Reporter . In recent years, it has also developed a cult-like, “so bad it’s good” kind of reputation — hence the attraction for Hutcherson and Franco to make a movie about it.
While it’s not known how large Josh’s role will be, James will be taking on the lead as Tommy Wiseau, the actor, director and writer of the original The Room . The part will be a great chance for Franco to roll out his character acting chops with Tommy’s awful dialogue presented through his thick, almost unintelligible Eastern European accent.
Hutcherson will play original The Room cast member Philip Haldiman, who portrayed Denny in the film. It has not yet been announced who will play Juliette Danielle, the actress who serves as the manipulative love interest at the center of the plot. Whoever ends up playing her across from Josh in the film will have their work cut out for them; Juliette has stated since the film’s release that she stopped taking it seriously mid-way through the project, reported Vulture .
“I can remember one time that I just lost it. It’s the line where Johnny has locked himself in the bathroom and he says, ‘In a few minutes, b***h.’ I was doing okay until I saw the entire crew in my field of vision, stifling their laughter. I couldn’t help it. Tommy came out and demanded to know what was so funny. That made it worse!”
Hutcherson will also be joined by frequent team James Franco members Seth Rogen and Dave Franco, his brother. Filming is expected to start in Los Angeles on Dec. 7.
The film will be Josh’s third collaboration with James, although none of their previous movies together have hit the screen yet. Both of the other projects are currently in post-production and based on novels by classic authors. Jumping off of John Steinbeck’s first major work, The Dubious Battle will follow a young man in the 1930s California worker’s rights movement. Aside from Franco and Hutcherson, the movie will also feature Selena Gomez, Ed Harris, Bryan Cranston, and Robert Duvall.
The other Josh and James project set to hit screen in 2016 is The Long Home , which will feature appearances by Courtney Love, Josh Hartnett, and Ashton Kutcher. That story, based on a book by William Gay, will follow a young man, Hutcherson, who must construct a Honky Tonk country music bar for his father’s killer.
Josh Hutcherson is capitalizing off the notoriety he garnered by starring the the four-part blockbuster series The Hunger Games alongside Jennifer Lawrence. Before appearing in the films, Josh had several successful roles as a child actor in popular movies like Bridge to Terabithia and Zathura . The boost from Hunger Games has put him among an elite class of name recognition for young Hollywood actors.
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