Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Oscar winners Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore join forces for new film May December

Portman will play a Hollywood actor who travels to Maine to study a mother she plans to portray onscreen

Roisin O'Connor
Saturday 12 June 2021 11:50 BST
Comments
Julianne Moore wins Oscar

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Julianne Moore and Natalie Portman will star together in May December, a new drama from director Todd Haynes.

Portman will play a Hollywood actor who travels to Maine to study a mother she plans to portray onscreen, while Moore will star as the woman in question, who 20 years ago was at the centre of a tabloid scandal after a romance with a man 23 years her junior.

As Gracie (Moore) and her husband Joe (the younger man) prepare for their twin daughters to graduate and with Elizabeth (Portman) staying with them, the family dynamics begin to unravel under the gaze of the outside world.

“What so appealed to me about Samy Burch’s exceptional script was how it navigated potentially volatile subject matter with a kind of observational patience that allowed the characters in the story to be explored with uncommon subtlety,” Haynes told Variety.

This is the sixth project Haynes will have worked on with Moore, following films including the psychological horror Safe, the 2002 period drama Far From Heaven – for which Moore received an Oscar nomination – and the 2017 mystery Wonderstruck.

Jessica Elbaum and Will Ferrell of Gloria Sanchez Productions are co-producing with Christine Vachon and Pam Koffler of Killer Films, and Portman and Sophie Mas for MountainA.

Principle photography is scheduled to begin next year.

Additional reporting by Press Association

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in