Christian Bale directed by David Fincher

If this collaboration ever occurs, I’ll be able to die happy. Fincher is my all-time favorite director and Bale is my all-time factor actor. Fincher directs uncomfortable thrillers with mind twists like Se7en, Fight Club, and Gone Girl. Christian Bale has acted in minimal thrillers, but he’s starred in great movies with chilling twists like American Psycho, The Prestige, and The Machinist. This feels like a match made in heaven. David Fincher’s mind works in mysterious ways and I think he could build an awesome thriller with a gutting twist around the Oscar nominated actor.

Brad Pitt directed by Rian Johnson

It doesn’t seem like the Knives Out franchise is going anywhere and I’m pretty damn happy about that. In the two we’ve seen so far, the only staple cast member is Daniel Craig. Outside of that, the whole cast completely changes. Down the line in a future Knives Out film, I’d love to see Brad Pitt play a character. Every investigation has involved very smug and pompous characters like Chris Evans and Toni Collette in Knives Out and Kate Hudson and Edward Norton in Glass Onion. Pitt has played that smug, airhead type of role before in Burn After Reading and Babylon, so this wouldn’t be a new task to take on. I think I speak for all film fans when I say that I’d love to see Brad Pitt in a Knives Out rendition.

Florence Pugh directed by Luca Guadagnino

While I don’t entirely love Guadagnino as a director, his films like Call Me By Your Name and Bones And All have great themes of a love story with added layers of complexity. The ideas of cannibalism or only having a short amount of time with a person has turned Guadagnino into a successful director and I respect that. Florence Pugh had a good 2022 for herself, even if Don’t Worry Darling wasn’t the best. Her most famous role came in a film I didn’t love in Midsommar. The daylight horror film is loved by many and I think her experience in love stories and obscure horror flicks pairs nicely with Guadagnino’s directing. Someone, please make a horror love story starring Pugh, directed by Guadagnino, happen.

Anya Taylor-Joy directed by Josh Safdie and Ben Safdie

When you talk about the winners of 2022, Anya Taylor-Joys name has to come up. She was great in The Northman and awesome in The Menu. She’s shooting to the moon right now and I think a film starring her, directed by the Safdie Brothers, could get her there. This duo directed two of my favorite movies of the 2010s with Uncut Gems and Good Time because both brought me to the point where my stomach was turning due to suspense. The Menu was a suspense loaded horror film that showed Taylor-Joy could handle a film with that energy. I don’t know what the concept would be, but the Safdie’s are great writers and could build a suspenseful, real life thriller around the beautiful Anya Taylor-Joy.

Jesse Eisenberg directed by Wes Anderson

In the wonderful world of Wes Anderson films, he uses charming cinematography and a cavalcade of stars. Many of his stars play whacky, obscure characters like Adrien Brody in The Grand Budapest Hotel and Owen Wilson in Bottle Rocket. I think this is where Eisenberg fits in. He’s done comedies and dramas before, but has also played a snarky character in Mark Zuckerberg that Anderson always incorporates.

I don’t envision Anderson building a whole film around Eisenberg, but he could be a great co-star for many of his upcoming films. Anderson really packs his casts, and Eisenberg could have definitely played Owen Wilsons role in The French Dispatch or Jason Schwartzmans role in The Grand Budapest Hotel. I’d love for Eisenberg to find himself on a screen in a Wes Anderson film. Mostly for my enjoyment.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson directed by Quentin Tarantino

When I watched Aaron Taylor-Johnson in Bullet Train, I felt a vibe of Tim Roth in Reservoir Dogs. The only exception was Taylor-Johnson was much more stylish. The energy that Taylor-Johnson radiates is confidence and that’s been a theme in recent Tarantino flicks. From Leo in Once Upon A Time In Hollywood to Foxx in Django Unchained, Tarantino is directing confidence that seeps into your brain.

If this combo is going to happen though, Tarantino needs to jump sooner rather than later. It’s rumored that Taylor-Johnson could be the next James Bond. Taylor-Johnson is good in action roles and I think could have played the Cliff Booth role in Once Upon A Time In Hollywood. He has great charm and would be someone that could draw a young adult audience to Tarantino flicks. How awesome would this duo be?

Robert Pattinson directed by Greta Gerwig

Greta Gerwig is so ambitious in every project she does. Little Women rocked, I fell in love with Lady Bird, and now she has Barbie coming out. She’s a risky director, but has not missed. Where I think Robert Pattinson could fit in is as a love interest in a drama. I don’t know who the star would be, but I think she could direct a romantic drama about a woman in her late twenties/early thirties that’s a bit lost in life. Whether you layer it with tragedy or past trauma, Pattinson would be an awesome love interest. He has some darkness around him from films like The Batman, The Lighthouse, and Good Time which adds even more layers to a romantic drama that Gerwig would blow out of the water.

Saoirse Ronan directed by Damien Chazelle

Please, please, PLEASE make this happen. Saoirse Ronan was amazing in Greta Gerwigs Lady Bird (see above), and now I want to see her in a dramatic, upbeat film that only Damien Chazelle can direct. Look at La La Land and Babylon. They’re fun films, but have undertones of sadness and despair. In Lady Bird, Ronan’s character was against the world and went through rigors of being a teenage girl. Now, let’s grow up. Put Ronan in a fun, big budget picture, but add a sadness around her character. You rooted for Miles Teller in Whiplash and Diego Calva in Babylon, but there is a lot of depressing elements. I need an executive to read this and get the wheels in motion.

Colin Farrell directed by Tom George

Much like Anya Taylor-Joy won 2022, Colin Farrell was right up there. On the directorial front, Tom George dropped a whimsical whodunit that I enjoyed. Now, we pair these two together and do a similar style film where Farrell is a bumbling detective or use a different plot based in 1950’s London. This feels like an obvious casting, right? George directs like Wes Anderson where he has snappy dialogue and quick panning shots. I love that. Farrell has never really done a film like this. This’d be a chance for Farrell to show off more range and for George to work with a great actor.

Hong Chau directed by Martin McDonagh

Hong Chau had a wild 2022 being in two of my favorite flicks, The Whale and The Menu. Chau has worked with Paul Thomas Anderson, Darren Aronofsky, and Wes Anderson, but I want to see her with Martin McDonagh. This may seem odd because McDonagh has directed comedies surrounding Europeans like The Banshees of Inisherin and In Bruges, but he also directed Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. That’s the kind of film I want to see her in. McDonaghs writing and directing of the dramatic crime film was amazing and Chau could play a role in a film of that caliber. Chau could be the one who has tragedy strike her life. She could also play a character who is close to someone going through a tragedy. Either way, McDonaghs writing coupled with Chaus emotional acting would make for a thrilling film.

Brendan Fraser directed by Paul Thomas Anderson

I am very mixed on Paul Thomas Anderson’s directing because I hate movies like Punch-Drunk Love, but loved Magnolia and There Will Be Blood. If Anderson ever reverted back to his early style of directing about real people in weird scenarios like Dirk Diggler from Boogie Nights or Donnie Smith from Magnolia, Fraser would fit in great. The Brenaissance is on and his career was revitalized by his moving performance in The Whale. It showed he can play a character beaten down by the trials and tribulations of life. That’s what a lot of Anderson’s early characters go through if you’ve seen his films.

A lot like Wes Anderson, early Paul Thomas Anderson films packed a big cast and followed multiple plots. Fraser could easily be a third or fourth plot line in a depressing film. Had Fraser been at this point of his career in the 90s, he’d play the William H. Macy role in Magnolia or the Philip Seymour Hoffman role in Boogie Nights. I’d love for the Brenaissance to continue with him being cast in a Paul Thomas Anderson movie.