Jack Nicholson is all set to make a huge comeback next year. The 80-year-old actor is reportedly to star in the Hollywood remake of the 2016 German film, Toni Erdmann, along with Kristen Wiig (Bridesmaids). This will be his first film after a long gap of seven years.
According to reports, the as-yet-untitled film will be produced by Adam McKay (director of The Big Short). Maren Ade, who directed the German film, will serve as executive producer. Earlier this year, she expressed her disinterest in a Hollywood remake, but seems to have adjusted to the idea now.
The German Toni Erdmann is a widely popular film that propelled leads Sandra Huller and Peter Simonischek to international fame. It explores the father-daughter dynamic through the story of Winfried Conradi, a funny, divorced teacher, and his businesswoman-daughter Ines in Bucharest.
A heart-warming story, it starts off with Winfried paying a surprise visit to his daughter. They have a tough time connecting, or even seeing eye to eye on a lot of things, particularly her busy lifestyle. He decides to go back home, to Germany, not wanting to impose upon his daughter. But then comes Toni Erdmann—who is actually Winfried, with false teeth and a wig and a quirky attitude—who pushes himself into Ines's social and work life. Eventually, the two warm up as she realises how he is important in her life.
Toni Erdmann, after touring Cannes, Palm d'Or, Toronto and other film festivals, was nominated for the Oscars in the foreign film category.
Running at 162 minutes, Ade's film is rated R for scenes that include full frontal nudity—features that will probably change when it is adapted to Hollywood.
Jack's back
Nicholson seems to be the perfect choice to play an eccentric old father trying to grab his daughter's attention.
While he has played a range of roles, he has been particularly good at playing off-beat characters. His portrayal of the psychological deterioration of Jack Torrence in Stanley Kubrick's adaptation of Stephen King's The Shining (1980) is perhaps his best role till date. His psychotic rendition of the Joker in Tim Burton's Batman (1989) stands to be a favourite among fans, after Heath Ledger.
Nicholson's roles in The Departed (left) and How Do You Know (right) were his last few roles before he went on a seven-year break
Among his other popular films are One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), for which he won the Oscar for Best Actor, the courtroom drama A Few Good Men (1992) and the more recent Martin Scorsese film, The Departed (2006).
He has been nominated for the Academy Awards 12 times, out of which he won twice for best actor (As Good As It Gets, 1998) and once for his supporting role in Terms of Endearment (1984).
In 2013, media reported that he had said that he was retiring because of 'memory problems' related to remembering lines. However, some other reports debunked this claim, saying that Nicholson was taking a break, because he was 'less driven to be out there any more.' He had passed up on roles in films such as 42 (2013) and The Judge (2014).
