Woody Harrelson is in the running to appear in Sailing, a new musical from Lionsgate. Sailing is presently being touted as a jukebox musical set in the 1970s with a large ensemble of actors and actresses as a whole. There is speculation that the story revolves around artists who fall in love with Yacht rock’s mellow vibes. Harrelson plays an eccentric boat skipper in both Triangle of Sadness, which won the Palme d’Or at Cannes this year, and Sailing, which will be his second recent production to include a yacht. Chris D’Arienzo, the creator of Rock of Ages, pitched the idea to producer Jeremy Plager, who bought it. Harrelson will star in and produce alongside Jonathan Levine and Gillian Bohrer of MegaMix, which has a first-look film and television agreement with Lionsgate.
He penned the hit musical Rock of Ages in 2009, which received five Tony Award nominations. The writer also collaborated with Justin Theroux and Allan Loeb on the film adaptation of Rock of Ages in 2012. Barry Munday, starring Patrick Wilson and directed by D’Arienzo, was released in 2010 as a comedy film. Now in pre-production is his second feature picture, Always on My Mind. According to Lionsgate President of Production Erin Westerman:
“Yacht rock’s spirit, ethics, and way of life will be celebrated in this nostalgic comedy full of laughs. This is a GREAT exciting project for us, and we’re excited to be working with such talented musicians as Jeremy, Jonathan, Gillian, Chris, and Woody. A team led by Meredith Wieck and Jon Humphrey is in charge of the production, while Lionsgate was represented by Bonnie Stylides, who negotiated all of the contracts.
The White House Plumbers, The Most Dangerous Man in America, Champions, and Last Breath are just a few of Harrelson’s forthcoming projects. There are several famous films in which Harrelson has starred before like White Men Can’t Jump and Zombieland, as well as The Hunger Games flicks. Harrelson’s recent filmography includes Kate, Venom: There Will Be Carnage, and The Man from Toronto, all of which he appeared in. The project, which is in the early phases of production, lacks a director or screenplay. Sailing will be covered in greater depth at Collider.