Director Richard Linklater has opened up about casting his movie that’s being filmed over the course of 20 years, Merrily We Roll Along, explaining how he approaches the actors he wants to star in the lengthy production. The movie stars Paul Mescal as Franklin Shepherd, a Broadway composer who turns his life upside down when he decides to become a Hollywood producer. Similar to Linklater’s Boyhood, the movie will be filmed at different intervals over the course of two decades, the ages of the characters reflective of the real actors aging as time marches on.

Speaking with The New York Times, Linklater explained how he approaches casting for Merrily We Roll Along, explaining the mindset of actors he wants in the movie. After joking about how he’ll be 80 when the film is done and that it’s possible he doesn’t get to finish it, the director reveals his casting process, using Patricia Arquette in Boyhood as an example. Check out what Linklater had to say below:

You said capstone to a career at age 80. I’ve never thought that, because I see myself making a film when I’m like 94. I really do. I’ll go along, try to stay in shape, try to be healthy, hope to get lucky. But we’re telling a story that takes place over 20 years, and it’s really important, for this story to work, that you feel those years go by. That was “Boyhood.” You had to feel life going by. And this movie is about long-term friendship and the way life treats people and how that shifts around over 20 years. Everybody involved is clearly doing it because they care, so we just have to assume they’ll keep caring and they’ll care 10 years, 15, 16, 17 more years. You judge people on that. Before I cast someone, I go, You’re a lifer. I did that on “Boyhood.” I asked Patricia Arquette, “What are you going to be doing 12 years from now?” She’s like, “I’m going to probably be looking for a part to play.” I said, “Yeah and I’m going to be trying to make a film, so let’s just start now and we’ll be who we are now and in the future.” That’s all it was. It’s not some huge leap of faith.

Why Dedicated Actors Are Necessary For Merrily We Roll Along

Actors Will Be Playing The Same Roll For 20 Years

Linklater’s Boyhood was filmed over the spin of 12 years, a major feat that required everyone involved in the movie to continuously come back to their roles every few years to film new scenes. As the director indicates, the dedication of actors to their craft is an important element to consider when casting for such a lengthy production. This means the stars of Merrily We Roll Along, from Mescal to Ben Platt and Beanie Feldstein, will likely continue to pursue acting into the future as they appear in the film throughout the next two decades.

This same level of dedication is shown through its director, with Linklater making movies like the critically praised Hit Man that comes out on Netflix on June 7. He’s also working on another film set for release in 2025, Nouvelle Vogue. His upcoming movies show that, despite having such a lengthy film project in his periphery, he’s still dedicated enough to his craft to keep pursuing it beyond one project. That kind of work ethic appears to be what he searches for in his actors, something that likely eases production for such a massive undertaking.

Given how much time Linklater is willing to put into crafting his 20-year movie, casting actors he knows will still be acting by the time filming is complete makes the whole process much easier. It makes it less likely for stars to drop out of the project and meshes with the director’s own dedication to film. His statement also teases just how important Merrily We Roll Along is to its stars, whose future careers in acting are now set in stone thanks to the movie’s lengthy production – and their dedication to it.

Source: The New York Times