After the massive awards buzz around The Brutalist, filmmaker Brady Corbet is already preparing something even bigger — and the cast alone is enough to get Hollywood talking. During an appearance at the Cannes Film Festival, Cate Blanchett casually revealed that she is about to work with Corbet on his next movie. Soon after, reports confirmed that Selena Gomez and Michael Fassbender are also part of the project, instantly turning the untitled film into one of the most anticipated upcoming productions in Hollywood.
What makes the project even more interesting is how secretive everything still is. Plot details are being tightly hidden, but Corbet has previously hinted that the movie will be a genre-defying “X-rated” story heavily focused on the 1970s while somehow stretching from the 19th century all the way into modern times. That alone sounds wildly ambitious, and honestly, very on-brand for a filmmaker like Corbet, who clearly doesn’t enjoy making safe or predictable cinema. The director has also reportedly chosen to shoot the movie using rare eight-perf 65mm cameras, which suggests the film could have a huge visual scale similar to classic epics from decades ago.
The biggest shock for many fans may actually be the film’s length. Speaking at the Storyhouse Screenwriting Festival in Dublin recently, Corbet revealed that the screenplay runs nearly 200 pages long. For comparison, The Brutalist itself had a 165-page script and reportedly stretched to around three-and-a-half hours. So if this new project follows the same pattern, audiences could be looking at another giant cinematic experience that feels more like an event than a standard film release.
For Cate Blanchett, the collaboration feels like another addition to an already legendary career filled with acclaimed auteurs. Over the years, she has worked with directors like Martin Scorsese, Guillermo del Toro, David Fincher, and Wes Anderson. Her recent performance in Father Mother Sister Brother once again reminded audiences why she remains one of the most respected actors working today. Blanchett has also built a reputation for picking bold, unusual projects rather than simply chasing commercial blockbusters, which makes her involvement in Corbet’s mysterious new movie feel very fitting.
Meanwhile, Selena Gomez continues expanding her acting career in ways many people probably didn’t expect a few years ago. While she remains one of the world’s biggest pop stars and the founder of Rare Beauty, Gomez has slowly been earning serious respect as an actress too. After early fame through Wizards of Waverly Place, she moved toward darker and more experimental work with films like Spring Breakers. More recently, her role in Emilia Pérez brought major awards attention and helped strengthen her position in prestige cinema circles.
At the same time, Gomez’s success on Only Murders in the Building has proven she can comfortably balance commercial popularity with critically acclaimed work. The Hulu mystery-comedy series recently secured a sixth season, while Gomez herself earned an Emmy nomination for her performance. That combination of mainstream appeal and artistic credibility probably makes her an especially attractive choice for ambitious directors looking to bring fresh energy into auteur-driven projects.
Michael Fassbender joining the film also adds another layer of intrigue because of his intense screen presence and history with psychologically heavy material. From Shame to Steve Jobs and the X-Men: First Class franchise, Fassbender has repeatedly shown he thrives in complicated, emotionally demanding roles. Pairing him with Blanchett and Gomez under Corbet’s direction feels like the kind of casting combination that could easily dominate future festival conversations.
Even though the film still doesn’t have a title or release date yet, industry excitement around the project is already building fast. Between the massive cast, unusual time-spanning story, experimental filmmaking style, and Brady Corbet’s growing reputation after The Brutalist, this could end up becoming one of the boldest prestige films currently in development. And if Corbet truly delivers another massive cinematic swing, Hollywood may once again find itself talking about him deep into awards season.
