Put on your finest neck fabrics and read this: More than three years after the release of his hot mess Mother! and a sensational tabloid romance, Darren Aronofsky has taken a cue from TLC and chosen The Whale as his next film. Deadline reports that Aronofsky will be directing cowboy hat icon Brendan Fraser in the lead role, with MacArthur-winning playwright Samuel D. Hunter adapting his provocative play for the screen, which originally had an off-Broadway run in 2012. The Whale, per its official theater website, revolves around a “six hundred pound recluse” (Fraser) living in rural Idaho who “hides away in his apartment eating himself to death.” However, he desperately tries to change his self-destructive behavior “to reconnect with his long-estranged daughter,” whom he discovers grew up to be “a viciously sharp-tongued and wildly unhappy teen.” (Anyone know if Elsie Fisher is available?) “This story is deeply personal and I’m very thankful it will have the chance to reach a wider audience,” Hunter told Deadline in a statement. “I’ve been a fan of Darren’s ever since I saw Requiem for a Dream when I was a college freshman writing my first plays, and I’m so grateful that he’s bringing his singular talent and vision to this film.” From his blowhole to God’s ears.
