Anora emerged as the standout winner at the 97th Annual Academy Awards, with Sean Baker personally claiming four Oscars. With all that Oscar gold under his belt, you might expect Baker to follow other acclaimed indie directors such as Chloé Zhao (Nomadland) and Barry Jenkins (Moonlight) by tackling a Marvel or Disney blockbuster, but you’d be wrong.
While speaking on THR‘s It Happened in Hollywood podcast, Baker admitted that he’s “still exploring some ideas” for his next project, but “don’t expect a Marvel film.“
“It’s not going to happen,” he said. “I’m intentionally going to stay in the same wheelhouse and with the approximate same budget. I think that I enjoy working in this space of 100 percent independent. I’m not working for even a mini studio. I’m making my film independently and then going the old school route of hopefully a bidding war or somebody licensing the movie. I think that’s the only way to have full autonomy and control over your vision. So it’ll be that. Expect more of the same.“
Even if Baker gives us “more of the same,” you can expect much more attention on whatever his next project becomes.
As for Mikey Madison, who took home the Academy Award for Best Actress, she also had her pick of projects, but didn’t go in the direction some expected. She was reportedly considered for one of the significant roles in Shawn Levy’s upcoming Star Wars movie starring Ryan Gosling, but ultimately passed. There was also talk that she was offered one of the lead roles in Zach Cregger’s upcoming Resident Evil reboot.
Instead, it was announced last month that she was set to co-star alongside Kirsten Dunst in Reptilia, a new feature from Alejandro Landes Echavarría (Monos). The movie is about a dental hygienist who is seduced by a mysterious mermaid into the dark and wet underworld of Florida’s exotic animal trade. It’s based on a script by Landes Echavarría and Duke Merriman. Principal photography is expected to commence this fall.
You can check out a glowing review of Baker’s Anora from our own Chris Bumbray right here.
