Lionsgate‘s adaptation of Jeanette Walls’ bestselling memoir The Glass Castle switched out Jennifer Lawrence for recent Oscar winner Brie Larson (Trainwreck, Room) late last year, and now The Hollywood Reporter confirms they’ve added another heavy-hitter to the cast in the form of Naomi Watts (The Divergent Series: Allegiant, Birdman).
Watts will play Larson’s character’s eccentric mother, while Woody Harrelson is onboard to portray her alcoholic dad. Shooting is set to begin in Montreal this June.
The 2006 source material is officially described as follows:
Jeannette Walls grew up with parents whose ideals and stubborn nonconformity were both their curse and their salvation. Rex and Rose Mary Walls had four children. In the beginning, they lived like nomads, moving among Southwest desert towns, camping in the mountains. Rex was a charismatic, brilliant man who, when sober, captured his children’s imagination, teaching them physics, geology, and above all, how to embrace life fearlessly. Rose Mary, who painted and wrote and couldn’t stand the responsibility of providing for her family, called herself an “excitement addict.” Cooking a meal that would be consumed in fifteen minutes had no appeal when she could make a painting that might last forever. Later, when the money ran out, or the romance of the wandering life faded, the Walls retreated to the dismal West Virginia mining town—and the family—Rex Walls had done everything he could to escape. He drank. He stole the grocery money and disappeared for days. As the dysfunction of the family escalated, Jeannette and her brother and sisters had to fend for themselves, supporting one another as they weathered their parents’ betrayals and, finally, found the resources and will to leave home.
The Glass House will be directed by Destin Cretton, who previously worked with Larson for her breakout role in his 2013 indie hit Short Term 12. Marti Noxon (“Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” Fright Night) initially adapted the film’s screenplay with Cretton, with Nicholl Fellowship-winning screenwriter Andrew Lanham performing additional rewrites.
Watts will next be seen opposite Jake Gyllenhaal in the dramedy Demolition on April 8, and we talked to her and the rest of the cast from that film so look out for those interview very soon!
(Photo Credit: WENN.com)
