‘The Whale’: ‘Watchmen’ And ‘Homecoming’ Actress Hong Chau Cast In Darren Aronofsky’s Next Film
By Ben Pearson/Feb. 10, 2021 5:30 pm EST
Deadline reports that Hong Chau, who broke out with her performance in Alexander Payne’s 2017 film Downsizing, has joined Brendan Fraser in The Whale cast. Here’s a description of the story, which is based on Samuel D. Hunter’s 2012 stage play:
Fraser will play the 600-pound man, and Chau will play his best friend. The outlet also says that Samantha Morton, who played the pre-cog Agatha in Steven Spielberg’s Minority Report, and Sadie Sink, who plays the red-headed tomboy Max on Netflix’s Stranger Things, are currently in talks to join the film. There’s no word on which character Morton would play, but if Sink’s deal goes through, she would play Fraser’s character’s daughter.
On the outskirts of Mormon Country, Idaho, a six hundred pound recluse hides away in his apartment, eating himself to death. Desperate to reconnect with his long-estranged daughter, he reaches out to her, only to find a viciously sharp-tongued and wildly unhappy teen. Big-hearted and fiercely funny, The Whale tells the story of a man’s last chance at redemption, and of finding beauty in the most unexpected places.
A24 is producing the movie with Aronofsky’s Protozoa Pictures, and Hunter (Greater Clements) will write the script based on his own play.
Chau previously appeared in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Inherent Vice and on HBO shows like Treme and Big Little Lies. She earned awards attention for playing Ngoc Lan Tran in Downsizing, portrayed the mysterious Lady Trieu on Watchmen, and appeared on both seasons of Homecoming as the ruthless Audrey Temple. I’ve liked what I’ve seen from her quite a bit, so I’m looking forward to seeing her continue to get her name on peoples’ radars in Hollywood and beyond.
