Annette is a musical about “a stand-up comedian whose opera singer wife is deceased,” according to IMDB, which depicts “the rise and fall of an intense love story” (Variety). Despite the fact that we are full-up on TV and movies about white male stand-up comedians and their “plight,” this one is intriguing: Rihanna has officially joined the production as, presumably, a singer, and the brooding, gangly Adam Driver is hardly someone you’d peg as a typical stand-up type from, say, a Judd Apotow production. Also, Annette will be helmed by French director Leos Carax, whose last full-length film, Holy Motors (2012), was a bonkers visual mindfuck that made little sense but sure was pretty to look at.
Additionally, the script was written by Sparks, the California new wave duo that formed in 1971 and notably soundtracked a lot of films in their most popular decade, the ‘80s. My personal favorite is their song “Eaten by the Monster of Love” as backdrop for this scene in 1983's Valley Girl, when some preppy nerd named Skippy accidentally bones his girlfriend’s mom (look, I just report this shit).
While Holy Motors (which included the Sparks song “How Are You Getting Home?”) split audiences with its fantastical impressionism, Caras also certainly knows how to deliver a love story. In 1991's Lovers on the Bridge, for instance, starring Juliette Binoche and Denis Lavant, he trailed a burgeoning love story between two imperfect leads, approaching it with the appropriate amount of beauty and drama. It also proved he’s got a flair for tragedy, so a story about sorrowful comedian starting a new love is just about his lane.
Variety reports that Annette will be distributed by Amazon Studios, and that it’s looking for another lead since Rooney Mara left the project due to scheduling conflicts. It is set to release in 2018.