‘Mank’ Trailer: David Fincher Returns And Heads To 1930s Hollywood
David Fincheris back with his first feature film since 2014’sGone Girl, and that’s cause for celebration.Mankis a 1930s Hollywood story about Herman J. Mankiewicz, the screenwriter who wrote the screenplay forCitizen Kane– although director Orson Welles later tried to take most of the credit, and various different accounts of what really happened have muddied the waters a bit.Gary Oldmanplays Mankiewicz, leading a cast that includesAmanda Seyfried,Lily Collins,Tom Burke, and more. Watch theManktrailer below.
Mank Trailer
While David Fincher has kept busy with projects likeMindhunter, there’s something extra exhilarating about him returning to feature films for the first time in six years. AndMankis bound to be a very personal project for Fincher since his fatherJack Fincherpenned the screenplay. InMank, “1930s Hollywood is re-evaluated through the eyes of scathing social critic and alcoholic screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz as he races to finish the screenplay of Citizen Kane for Orson Welles.”
Gary Oldman stars as Mankiewicz, with Tom Burkeplaying Orson Welles, Amanda Seyfried as Marion Davies, Lily Collins as Rita Alexander,Arliss Howardas Louis B. Mayer,Charles Danceas William Randolph Hearst, Tom Pelphrey as Joseph L. Mankiewicz, Tuppence Middleton as Sara Mankiewicz,Joseph Crossas Charles Lederer,Craig Robert Youngas Charlie Chaplin,Sebastian Faureas Clark Gable,Michelle Twarowskaas Joan Crawford,Scarlet Cummingsas Bette Davis,Natalie Denise Sperlas Greta Garbo,Trevor Wooldridgeas Darryl F. Zanuck,Ferdinand Kingsleyas Irving Thalberg, andToby Leonard Mooreas David O. Selznick.
Fincher has been hoping to make this movie since at least 1997, withThe Fincher Analystreporting that at the time, Fincher wanted hisSevenactorKevin Spaceyas Mankiewicz andPanic Room’sJodie Fosteras Marion Davies. Obviously, that didn’t happen. But Fincher never gave up on the idea, and now he’s finally made it. In a 2009 interview, Fincher said the budget is what derailed the project back in the ’90s:
“It was too expensive. Because if you’re going to make a Hollywood insider movie—it’s nothing to do with Hollywood really, it’s Hollywood in the late thirties, early forties—you’ve got to make it really cheaply. We had a chance to make the movie for, like, $13 million, back in 1998 and, um, [guiltily] I wanted to make it in black and white. [Laughs] And that fucked up all those home video and video sellthrough and cable deals. I haven’t read it in a while. I probably should.”
Thankfully, Netflix has been willing to throw money at acclaimed directors to make long-gestating movies happen. They did with Martin Scorsese’sThe Irishman, and now they’ve done it with Fincher andMank.
Mankwill open in select theaters in November before arriving on Netflix onDecember 4.
And if you need moreMankaction, here’s a completely different (and in my opinion, better) trailer that was first released directly to Reddit.
