Angelina Jolie was ‘put through her paces’ by Universal Pictures chairman Donna Langley before she landed the job of directing Unbroken.
Jolie is set to return to the director’s chair this December with Unbroken, which is a biopic movie about Olympic runner Louis Zamperini, who was captured by the Japanese during the Second World War and held in a labour camp.
This is the second movie for Jolie after she made her debut with In the Land of Blood and Honey, but Langley pushed the actress turned director to make sure that she was the right filmmaker for the job.
Speaking to Variety magazine, Langley said: "I've seen almost every film about that conflict, and I thought her film was the most impactful and clearest about what people were living through during that time. The movie follows the story of a woman caught in difficult circumstances, who has to persevere; that's very synonymous with Louis Zamperini's story [in 'Unbroken'].
"She had to work for it. I put her through her paces. After a few conversations, it became very clear that she was ready to step up to the task."
Unbroken comes three years after her debut with In the Land of Blood and Honey, but this is set to be the movie that really puts her on the mark as a filmmaker. The movie is already being tipped as a major Oscar contender, and we could be seeing Jolie in the Best Director race for the very first time.
Jolie has brought together a terrific cast as Jack O’Connell, Domhnall Gleeson, Jai Courtney, Garrett Hedlund, Luke Treadaway, and Finn Wittrock are all on board. O’Connell has already had a terrific year with Starred Up and ‘71, but this is the movie will kick off 2015 with a bang and send his star rocketing even further.
As for Jolie, she is already back in the director’s chair as she has completed work on By The Sea, which sees her star alongside Brad Pitt and direct him for the first time. This is the first movie for the pair since the success of Mr & Mrs Smith and will once again see them playing a married couple.
Jolie has also penned the screenplay as well as being in the director’s chair and on the cast list, but no official release date for the film has yet been announced.
Jolie has also been announced as the director for the upcoming drama Africa, which will follow Richard Leakey’s battle with ivory poachers in Kenya during the eighties.
Unbroken is released 16th January 2015.
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