EXCLUSIVE: Brad Pitt found his military sidekick in his new Netflix feature War Machine. Anthony Michael Hall has been cast to star opposite Pitt in the satirical comedy from writer-director David Michôd (The Rover, Animal Kingdom). The project, which was inspired by the bestselling book The Operators: The Wild And Terrifying Inside Story Of America’s War In Afghanistan by the late journalist Michael Hastings, concerns a four star, “rock star” general whose lethal reputation and impeccable track record vaults him to command the American war in Afghanistan. While Pitt plays a character loosely based on Gen. Stanley McChrystal, Hall portrays the No. 2 in the military regime — Gen. Hank Pulver, who is also loosely based on McChrystal’s second in command Gen. Mike Flynn.
War Machine was acquired by Netflix earlier this year in an industry eyebrow-raising move that was considered a game-changer for the company. It not only marked the largest investment the company has made so far in a feature (around $30M), but they were able to grab hold of A-lister Pitt. The actor is producing with his Plan B Entertainment partners Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner, and producer Ian Bryce (World War Z, Saving Private Ryan).
Hall, who started out years ago as a John Hughes favorite, is now an actor, film producer, and director. He had the leading role and served as co-exec producer for the USA Network series Stephen King’s The Dead Zone for five years. During its run, he directed an episode. He also co-starred in the Oscar-nominated Foxcatcher in 2014 and most recently, he played the menacing Russian “kettle bell master” Grigory alongside Guy Pearce in the film Results, a comedy about a team of personal trainers.
Hall is represented by manager Jonathan Brandstein and attorneys Jeff Frankel and Scott Whitehead.
Must Read Stories
Subscribe to Deadline Breaking News Alerts and keep your inbox happy.