Whoopi Goldberg and Giancarlo Esposito have joined Toni Collette and Thomas Haden Church in Shriver, a new comedy from writer-director Michael Maren, which is based on Chris Beldon’s book of the same name. The film will mark a reunion for Goldberg, Esposito and Church, who previously all appeared in 2001’s Monkeybone.
Deadline reports that the film will tell the “story of a loner mistaken for a renowned but reclusive author. He suddenly finds himself the center of attention at a writer’s conference celebrating the 20th anniversary of the book written by the real author. Shriver takes on the mistaken identity while sparking a romance with the English professor who runs the conference and is about to pull it all off when the real Shriver appears.”
“From the very beginning we just loved the clever premise and I’m already imagining the laugh out loud moments that this superlative cast will deliver,” said Content’s President of Film. “We’re really excited to be working with Michael [and producers Josh Kesselman and Alfred Sapse] on this wonderful comedy.”