Callum Turner and Riley Keough have joined the cast of Karim Aïnouz’s Rosebush Pruning, replacing Kristen Stewart and Josh O’Connor who were originally announced on the project during Cannes alongside Elle Fanning.
Fanning remains on board alongside Masters of the Air star Turner and Daisy Jones & The Six actress Keough, whose involvement was unveiled as filming is underway in Spain.
The swap-out is believed to be for scheduling reasons with Stewart currently immersed in post-production on her long gestated passion project The Chronology of Water.
In further newly-announced cast additions, Jamie Bell (All of Us Strangers), Lukas Gage (The White Lotus, Euphoria), Tracy Letts (Lady Bird, Ford vs Ferrari), Elena Anaya (The Skin I Live In) and Pamela Anderson, who is enjoying a buzzy big screen comeback with The Last Showgirl, have also joined the production.
Originally announced with the title format Rosebushpruning, the movie, for MUBI, The Match Factory and Fremantle’s The Apartment, is an adaptation of Marco Bellochio’s psychological feature 50 years ago, which was titled Fists in the Pocket.
Firebrand director Aïnouz is directing from a script written by Efthimis Filippou (Kinds of Kindness, The Killing of a Sacred Deer, The Lobster).
“I’m so excited to bring this audacious and delicious script to life, which challenges our notions of the traditional family and the patriarchy, with this brilliant ensemble of actors who I have long admired,” said Aïnouz.
Viola Fügen and Michael Weber are producing for The Match Factory, which is also handling worldwide sales for the film.
The adaptation rights were acquired from Bellocchio’s company Kavac Film, with the company’s CEO Simone Gattoni also producing alongside Annamaria Morelli for The Apartment.
Andreas Wentz and Juan Cano “Nono” from Surfilm are co-producing in Spain and Rachel Dargavel for Crybaby is co-producing in the UK.
MUBI is financing production along with The Apartment, Metafilms, Anna Films and In Bloom. German Federal Film Board, Film- und Medienstiftung NRW and Medienboard and the BFI also funded the film.
Turner is represented by Curtis Brown Group, WME, Johnson Shapiro and Shelter PR. Keough is represented by CAA, Hansen Jacobson Teller, and The Lede Company. Bell is represented by 3 Arts Entertainment, CAA and Sloane, Offer, Weber & Dern. Gage is represented by WME, 2AM and Goodman, Genow, Schenkman. Anaya is represented by Kuranda Management and Independent Talent. Anderson is represented by CAA, and Hansen Jacobson. Fanning is represented by UTA, TFC Management, and Hansen Jacobson.