CriterionCast

Steven Soderbergh Working On An End Of The Road Documentary, Retirement Still In The Cards

With Comic Con officially in the rear view mirror, one of the names that really took San Diego by storm was director Steven Soderbergh.   His film, Haywire, saw the release of a trailer and some footage, all of which really impressed the members of the audience who attended the film’s panel.

And now, in the wake of the Con, The Playlist was able to chat with the director, and learned a lot about a few projects coming down the director’s pipeline.

First up, Soderbergh revealed that he’s completed a documentary following the making of the cult classic, End Of The Road.   Penned by Easy Rider co-writer Terry Southern (probably best known for his screenplay for Dr. Strangelove), the film starred James Earl Jones, Stacy Keach and Harris Yulin, and was rated X for featuring an abortion sequence.   It became a cult hit for those looking for a bit of counter-culture, and is a beloved film for Sodbergh.   He donated a large bit of cash (the total hasn’t been disclosed), to the NY Public Library in order to keep their Southern archives intact.

The outlet also chatted with Soderbergh about his retirement plans, and they are still very much on.   A film like Magic Mike, which has come into the fold as a late addition to his slate, is something that he wants to get done, and get done fast, saying that he ‘told Channing (Tatum, Magic‘s star) ‘˜Look we can do this, but it has to be now and it has to be in September.” Toss in the long talked about Liberace biopic and his Man From U.N.C.L.E. adaptation, and he’s got one hell of a full slate.

Finally, Soderbergh revealed that he may be taking his Cleopatra rock musical, which was set to star Catherine Zeta-Jones and Hugh Jackman, but fell apart, to the stage.   He loved the film’s script, and with his canon including a run on the stage, this is something that is definitely a distinct possibility, particularly if this could be something that Soderbergh finds time to do in his post-retirement free time.

Personally, it will be sad to see him go, but obviously, with the cavalcade of projects he has on his slate, we will still be seeing a lot from Soderbergh.   He’s a brilliant filmmaker, and we will always have his fantastic canon to bask in.   There are very few filmographies quite like the one that Soderbergh has built up, so here’s to hoping we can keep watching new entries for quite some time.

What do you think?

Source The Playlist

Joshua Brunsting

Josh is a critic, a member of the Online Film Critics Society, a wrestling nerd, a hip-hop head, a father, a cinephile and a man looking to make his stamp on the world, one word at a time.

4 comments

  • MR ADRIAN DWIGHT SWABY
    ADRIAN SWABY MROH SEX DRIVE CLITORIS YOUR WATCH 
    THAILAND LPC 
    DEAR SIR
    FUCK OFF NOW
    WATCH OR NEWSPAPER COLUMNSO COLIN POWELL KEPT THE CHEQUESJAMES EARL JONESJAY LENO OR THE REAL ONE IF NOT S ROBOT

  • To be a stickler, he’s actually COMPLETED the End of Road doc and Cleo MIGHT hit the stage. Not for sure. Feel free to delete this comment afterwards. I don’t know how to get in touch with you.