Baz Luhrmann has set his new project, “Jehanne d’Arc,” at Warner Bros.
Warners has confirmed that the filmmaker will next take on the epic tale of France’s national heroine and saint Joan of Arc. The teenaged Joan of Arc became a heroine after leading the French army to victory in Orléans in 1429. She was burned at the stake in 1431.
Earlier this year, Luhrmann dropped out of the long-awaited English-language adaptation of Russian novel “The Master and Margarita,” stepping back from the project entirely following concerns over the book rights.
A casting call for the Joan of Arc character will go out Tuesday.
Luhrmann’s directing debut came in 1992 with “Strictly Ballroom,” which began as a short play at the Wharf Theatre in Sydney. The film’s breakout success led to his subsequent string of hits such as “Romeo + Juliet” (1996), “Moulin Rouge!” (2001), “Australia” (2008), “The Great Gatsby” (2013) and most recently “Elvis.”
Throughout his film career, Luhrmann has also found success in opera (Puccini’s “La Bohème” on Broadway in 2002), short-films/commercials such as “N° 5 the Film” for Chanel N° 5, featuring Nicole Kidman and Rodrigo Santoro in 2004, and “The Secret Life of Flowers” for a collaboration between Erdem and H&M.
He worked as executive producer, writer and director for “The Get Down” on Netflix (co-created with playwright Stephen Adly Gurgis), and has done extensive work in music production, from 1997’s spoken-word song “Everybody’s Free (To Wear Sunscreen)” to his chart-topping soundtrack to “The Great Gatsby.”
Joan of Arc’s story has been told on film and television many times, including in Luc Besson’s “The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc” starring Milla Jovovich.
The story was first reported by Deadline.
From Variety US