Actor-director James Franco turned to a lesser-known John Steinbeck novel—as well as a star-studded cast including Selena Gomez, Nat Wolff, and Robert Duvall—for his latest project, an adaption of In Dubious Battle for a September world premiere in Venice.
Besides directing it, Franco is also starring in the movie, along with Nat Wolff, as a fruit picker who puts his life on the line for the good of his fellow workers on the farm and nationwide. Franco plays Mac McLeod, an activist who has recruited Wolff’s Jim Nolan to his cause, winning fair wages for hardworking but ruthlessly exploited Californian fruit pickers.
Besides Gomez and Duvall, the cast also includes Vincent D’Onofrio, Bryan Cranston, Ed Harris, Ashley Greene, Zach Braff, Sam Shepard, and John Hutcherson, ensuring real cross-generation appeal with a clutch of high-profile accolades between them.
Franco, whose brother Dave is in theaters opposite Emma Roberts with thriller Nerve, has In Dubious Battle set for a world premiere at the Venice International Film Festival on Sept. 3. —Relaxnews
Watch the film’s first trailer below.
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