MGM Studio and the Farrelly brothers have closed Sean Penn to play Larry, and negotiations are underway with Jim Carrey to play Curly, with the actor already making plans to gain 40 pounds to approximate the physical dimensions of Jerome “Curly” Howard.
The studio is knocking on Benicio Del Toro head to play Moe.
What am I talking about? The Three Stooges! With all three actors, MGM and the Farrelly brothers have pulled off a coupe.
As reported here in November, the film is not a biopic, but rather a comedy built around the antics of the three characters that Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Howard played in the Columbia Pictures shorts.
Production starts in early fall for a release sometime in 2010. The Farrellys also wrote the script.
Last time Penn was in a comedy was 1989’s We’re No Angels. It’s a good turn for Penn, rather refreshing, I’d say.
According to Variety, the Farrellys have long had their eyes on Del Toro to play Moe. Del Toro showed his comedic timing in Snatch.
It’s no surprise that Carrey is to play Curly. Howard established the character as a seminal physical comedian, from the first time he appeared in the first Stooges short in 1934 until he suffered a stroke on the set in 1946.
The Three Stooges is being revived by MGM with Peter and Bobby Farrelly to direct the project. The plan is to bring the Stooges into mayhem of contemporary comedy.
According to Variety, the Farrelly brothers spent five years trying to make the Stooges movie at Warner Bros.
November 20, 2009 is set for the release date, which puts the film up against Sherlock Holmes, Plant 51 and Old Dogs.
The plot for a $45 million budget comedy (PG or PG-13) will feature the slap-happy low-tech comedy prevalent in the Stooges shorts. It will be interesting to see who they get to play these off-the-wall characters that made absolutely no sense but were hilarious.
Pete Farrelly told Variety that the film will not be a biopic, but instead take place in present day while they look, dress and sound exactly like the Stooges with genuine slap-stick humor.
The plan is designed similarly to the shorts while a feature storyline threads three installments together. Each installment runs 25 to 30 minutes. Other comedy shorts will precede the Stooges. It appears the Farrelly brothers plan to create the atmosphere that audiences experienced when they watched the original Stooges shorts.
Of course, the Farrelly brothers know how difficult this will be to pull off another generation of knuckleheads. It’s a big gamble, but with their track record, There’s Something About Mary, Dumb & Dumber, Shallow Hal and Kingpin, they have a darn good chance. “Yuk, yuk, yuk.”
