Jesse Eisenberg to direct musical starring Julianne Moore and Paul Giamatti

Is it possible that the musical film is so back? Despite that funny marketing trick (you know, the one where there’s never any singing in the trailers), the genre seems to be regaining some ground. 2024 began with Mean Girls getting upgraded from streaming-only to a theatrical release and ends with Wicked earning Oscar buzz. To cap things off, here’s another good sign: up-and-coming auteur Jesse Eisenberg’s next film, set to star Julianne Moore and Paul Giamatti, is also reportedly a “musical comedy.”

According to Deadline, this as-yet-untitled film “follows a shy woman who is unexpectedly cast in a local production of an original musical. Under the spell of the strong-willed and enigmatic director, she loses herself in the role and the high-stakes world of this community theater production.” Eisenberg will direct the film from his own script in addition to “contributing original music,” per the outlet. 

Giamatti, of course, is coming off of a Golden Globe-winning performance in The Holdovers. Julianne Moore, no stranger to awards season herself, is reuniting with Eisenberg after starring in his directorial debut When You Finish Saving The World. And Eisenberg is currently promoting his sophomore feature, the well-received dramedy A Real Pain co-starring himself and Kieran Culkin. (He also just wrapped shooting Now You See Me 3.) 

The new musical is being produced by Topic Studios and Fruit Tree, the production company helmed by Emma Stone, her husband Dave McCary, and Ali Herting. Fruit Tree also produced When You Finish Saving The World and A Real Pain, and reportedly helped Eisenberg develop the script for this next film. Stone—who won her first Oscar for one of the most critically acclaimed musicals of the 21st century, La La Land—said in an interview for Searchlight Pictures that she “fell in love with [Eisenberg] as an actor and a person, but then very quickly fell in love with his writing.” Let’s see how his writing works in musical format!