THR has revealed that Hilary Swank, Michael Shannon and Robert Forster have joined Taissa Farmiga and Blythe Danner in the cast of What They Had, a drama which centers on a woman (Swank) who must fly back to her hometown and confront her past when her Alzheimer’s-stricken mother wanders into a blizzard.
The drama will mark the feature directorial debut of actress and playwright Elizabeth Chomko, who is directing from her own script, which was the recipient of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences’ Nicholl Fellowship in Screenwriting.
“Elizabeth is an exceptionally talented new voice and we are excited to be partnering with her on her extraordinarily moving directorial debut,” said Keith Kjarval, who is producing the project. “Hers is a very personal story about a subject that affects millions of people around the world.”
Swank will next appear in Steven Soderbergh’s Logan Lucky, while Shannon has recently wrapped the war drama Horse Soldiers.