Clint Eastwood's last movie, The Mule, arrived less than a year ago to...well, let's call it a divisive response. On the one hand, Eastwood's a Hollywood legend, an actual icon, and both his work ethic (Eastwood is 89 years young this year) and wildly economic approach to filmmaking are virtually unparalleled by anyone else of the same status. On the other hand, dude's been very outspoken about his politics (we all remember the Chair Incident, yes?), and it's become increasingly difficult for some viewers - note the use of the word "some" here! If you're not among that contingent you do not need to get angry! - to separate the artist from his beliefs. The Mule was greeted accordingly.
But now Eastwood's back with a new film, Richard Jewell, based on the true story of the security guard who found himself under fire after discovering a bomb at the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics. Starring I, Tonya's Paul Walter Hauser as the titular guard and featuring a cast that includes Jon Hamm, Sam Rockwell, Olivia Wilde and Kathy Bates, my suspicion is that this film will be treated with less eyeball-rolling than the one where an 88-year-old Clint Eastwood found himself in a three-way.
Today brings us the first trailer for the film. It's pretty good!
Somewhat famously, Eastwood shot and completed this film in record time (it started shooting this past June and will be released in December), but that's par for the course when it comes to Eastwood productions. Also worth noting: it's interesting to see this film finally make it across the finish line, what with the long history of starts-and-stops that have plagued various Richard Jewell projects over the years (some time ago, Jonah Hill was onboard to co-star in the film with Leonardo DiCaprio, with Paul Greengrass directing). We hope it's good, and are particularly eager to see how Hauser fares here - that dude was the secret weapon of I, Tonya.
Anyway, here's an official plot synopsis:
"The world is first introduced to Richard Jewell as the security guard who reports finding the device at the 1996 Atlanta bombing—his report making him a hero whose swift actions save countless lives. But within days, the law enforcement wannabe becomes the FBI’s number one suspect, vilified by press and public alike, his life ripped apart. Reaching out to independent, anti-establishment attorney Watson Bryant, Jewell staunchly professes his innocence. But Bryant finds he is out of his depth as he fights the combined powers of the FBI, GBI and APD to clear his client’s name, while keeping Richard from trusting the very people trying to destroy him."
Richard Jewell hits theaters on December 13th, where it will serve as counterprogramming for anyone who's not into space battles or singing felines.