After years of working in indie film, actor Josh O’Connor had a breakout 2024 thanks to “Challengers” and “La Chimera.” Both films put Hollywood on notice, and O’Connor’s reward? A role in Rian Johnson‘s next “Knives Out” mystery, “Wake Up Dead Man.”
READ MORE: Josh O’Connor Joins Emily Blunt On Steven Spielberg’s Upcoming UFO Blockbuster
But Deadline reports O’Connor’s latest casting sounds more like his recent work with Luca Guadagnino and Alice Rohrwacher. This time the British actor will work with esteemed American filmmaker Kelly Reichardt on her next film, “The Mastermind.” Official plot details remain under wraps, but the film centers on an art heist amidst the backdrop of the Vietnam War. Josh O’Connor peforming an art heist? Sounds similar to the trickstery archeological digs the actor does in “La Chimera.”
Minor similarities aside, it’s quite the coup for O’Connor to work with Reichardt, who’s easily one of the most respected female filmmakers of her generation. And it helps that Reichardt is on a hot streak too. Critics have adored has last couple of films, with “Showing Up” ranking on many top 10 lists for 2022 and “First Cow” doing the same in 2020. But then, all of Reichardt’s films receive high marks from the press.
Reichardt works with filmscience again for “The Mastermind,” which she’s done for every one of her feature films since 2006’s “Old Joy.” Neil Kopp, Anish Savjani, and Vinvent Savino produce through the banner. MUBI is also involved in financing the film, and will distribute it in North American, the UK, and other parts of Europe and Asia. MUBI also handled the distribution right to “First Cow” in 2021. The Match Factory will handle the rest of the worldwide sales for “The Mastermind,” with UTA International Film Group also involved in financing.
Audiences may see O’Connor next in “Lee” opposite Kate Winslet. That film, about model and WWII photojournalist Lee Miller, had its world premiere at TIFF last year and hits US theaters soon. Other upcoming work for O’Connor beyond “Wake Up Dead Man” include “The History Of Sound” with Paul Mescal, which will likely receive a 2025 theatrical release, and Steven Spielberg‘s upcoming UFO blockbuster.
On paper, a Kelly Reichardt-Josh O’Connor team-up sounds fantastic, and easily lands “The Mastermind” on the most anticipated films list of 2025/2026. Stay tuned for more details on the movie soon.