Richard Ayoade, who should've been in a Wes Anderson movie by now, joins Henry Sugar

Ayoade and Anderson together at last—a match made in twee heaven

By Tatiana Tenreyro | January 12, 2022 | 6:55pm

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Richard Ayoade, who should've been in a Wes Anderson movie by now, joins Henry Sugar

Richard Ayoade Photo: Ilya S. Savenok

There have been rumblings on TikTok and Twitter about twee making a comeback, so what better way to mark that revival than by casting Richard Ayoade in a Wes Anderson movie? The English actor and filmmaker will finally enter Anderson’s cinematic universe in the auteur’s Netflix adaptation of Roald Dahl’s The Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar, per Deadline.

It’s a match made in cinematic heaven. Ayoade already dresses like he’s one of Anderson’s colorful, well-fashioned characters, and his critically acclaimed, aesthetically stunning 2010 film Submarine received plenty of comparisons to Anderson’s work, too. No details on his character have been revealed yet, but it doesn’t matter—the casting is already perfect.

Rupert Friend—who appeared in Anderson’s The French Dispatch and is set to have a role in Anderson’s upcoming film, Asteroid City—is also among the latest to join the very British cast that already includes Benedict Cumberbatch, Dev Patel, Ralph Fiennes, and Ben Kingsley.

Not much information has been shared about this adaptation for Netflix yet, but this is one of several upcoming Netflix projects based on the British author’s work. The streaming service acquired the full Dahl catalog in September of 2021, and is already working on a Charlie And The Chocolate Factory series from Taika Waititi and Phil Johnston. There is also a cinematic adaptation of Matilda The Musical in the works, in partnership with Sony and Working Title.

The Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar marks Anderson’s second Dahl adaptation and his first time working with Netflix. Fantastic Mr. Fox was previously the only film Wes Anderson didn’t write an original story for, though he still made it feel very much his own.

As for other of Anderson’s projects in the works, he’s currently filming Asteroid City in Spain, featuring many of the director’s recurring stars: Bill Murray, Tilda Swinton, Jason Schwartzman, Adrien Brody, and more.

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