Darren Aronofsky‘s latest film, “The Whale,” hit theaters last weekend, so now audiences get a glimpse at Brandon Fraser‘s buzzy lead performance (read The Playlist’s review of the film here). But what does Aronofsky have next on the horizon? EW reports (via The AV Club) that it may be a musical; and not just any musical, but one of his 2010 smash hit “Black Swan” with Natalie Portman.
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“We’re trying to do the “Black Swan” musical,” Aronofsky said in a new interview with The AV Club. “We’ll see what happens. But we’re working on it.” “Black Swan” stars Portman as a prima ballerina who pushes herself to the limits of self-destruction in pursuit of perfection. Portman nabbed an Oscar win for Best Actress for her performance, with the film receiving four other nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director. “Black Swan” also stars Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel, and Barbara Hershey.
Making “Black Swan” into a musical is a no-brainer, especially given that the film centers on a production of Tchaicovsky‘s ballet “Swan Lake.” But would Aronofsky ever attempt to make a musical film? The director told The AV Club he’d “love to” and has “talked to many people about it” and “come close to a few ideas.” However, Aronofsky thinks it may be too difficult to pull off. “It’s a very tricky thing because music from musicals is not popular music anymore. So what do you do?” said the director. “I think “Hamilton” was brilliant because Lin-Manuel Miranda fused hip-hop with musical music. And so he had this breakthrough that was really brilliant. But figuring that angle of it, of what the music would be, where it comes from, is the big challenge. But I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about it. And hopefully, one day, I could figure something out.”
A musical from Darren Aronofsky? Strangers things have happened. But let’s see how “The Whale” does during awards season before any more speculation on what the director does next.
