Ralph Fiennes is ready to get back behind the camera with a very intriguing-sounding—and probably very nimble—new drama. Screen Daily reports that Fiennes will next direct a drama about “iconic” Russian ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev, who passed away in 1993. The film is reportedly not a traditional biopic, but will instead, in accordance with Tobias’ First Law Of Biopics, “[chart] a specific incident in the life of the celebrated dancer.”
The outlet also reports that British playwright and screenwriter David Hare, known for his big-screen work on features like The Reader and The Hours, will pen the script. Moreover, the project has also purchased the rights to Julie Kavangh’s biography Nureyev: The Life, which should add a hefty dose of realism to the film. The film will be produced by Gabrielle Tana, along with former Pathe exec Francois Ivernel.
Fiennes has previously directed two films: the 2011 Shakespeare adaptation Coriolanus and 2013’s Charles Dickens sorta-biopic The Invisible Woman, both of which he co-starred in. As of now, it’s not believed that Fiennes will star in his newest film.
Although Hare’s script details are “being kept under wraps,” the screenwriter has plenty of crazy details to pull from; Nureyev’s life was so insane and fraught that there’s little doubt that even focusing on a single event will result in anything less than very, very dramatic stuff. Nureyev was born on a train—a train!—and fell in love with dance at a young age, though he could not start his formal training until he was 17. A big star in the Soviet Union, Nureyev’s outspoken personality marked him early on, and the state soon refused to let its beloved dancer venture beyond its borders. In 1961, however, young Nureyev was picked to replace an injured fellow dancer during a huge performance in Paris, which eventually pushed him to defect to France. (We’re guessing this will likely be the plot of the film, because Nureyev’s defection was wild and wooly and deeply tense.) He was not allowed back into the USSR until 1987 (when he visited his mother after so many years apart) and 1989 (when he was able to perform in his homeland for the first time in nearly three decades). He later became the director of the Paris Opera Ballet. He passed away in 1993 from complications related to AIDS.
The film will likely start shooting late next year.