Rebecca Hall, Rachel Weisz & Naomi Watts Wishlist Candidates For Female Lead Roles
Ranked #35 on the Black List in 2009, Dave Mandel‘s script for the true story tale “The Trade” has been in the works for a while and was first announced as a starring vehicle for Ben Affleck and Matt Damon last winter. The story is based on real-life players Fritz Peterson and Mike Kekich, who in 1973 revealed that they had been swapping wives and fell for each other’s partners. Peterson and Kekich’s ex-wife are still together today, while the other couple has since split up with Kekich later remarrying. Affleck would play the role of Peterson with Matt Damon playing Kekich. Last fall, the project heated up again as the brothers Affleck, Ben and Casey, would be rewriting the script, however, it seems the film could be in for a bumpy ride.
The NY Post reports that, somewhat unsurprisingly, Mike Kekich isn’t too keen on his past being dredged up and the scandal being exposed all over again, and their sources tell them that other former Yankee players are also not participating in providing info on what went down.
We don’t see this being much of a roadblock to the film happening. We imagine the focus will be more on the relationships, and that the story will play a bit fast and loose with the historical accuracy. However, the filmmakers would likely want to get some kind of approval from Kekich lest Affleck and Damon — both die hard Red Sox fans — be accused of dragging a former Yankee through the mud all in the name of making a movie. But either way, the project is likely a bit of a way off as Affleck looks likely to be directing the political thriller “Argo” next and Damon has a number of projects lined up for the rest of the year.
And with that being said, the NYPost also says that Naomi Watts, Rachel Weisz and Rebecca Hall are all being considered for the female leads which, given how early it is in the project’s development, is likely nothing more than wish list wants or just flat out speculation. So, “The Trade” is still somewhere on the horizon, just don’t expect it to head into your local ballpark anytime soon.
