Clint Eastwood Will Direct Beyoncé In Remake Of 'A Star Is Born'

Well, it's not Paint Your Wagon 2, but I guess this is as good a way to get another major filmmaker to do a musical as any. A new version of A Star Is Born is a film that has been lurking at the edges of possibility for a couple years. Now Clint Eastwood has agreed to produce and direct it, with Beyoncé starring.

Deadline has the surprising news of Clint Eastwood's involvement. Beyoncé has been attached since last year, and there was a point where it looked like Russell Crowe might co-star with Nick Cassavetes directing. That version died, but the script now is apparently the same one by Will Fetters that was floating around WB then. At this point, there is no male lead cast.

This would be the fourth major screen version of A Star is Born, with the Judy Garland version from 1954 standing as the most revered. We can probably expect some updates to the story of a young girl who dreams of being a star and is given a boost by a washed-up older star, but at the core don't expect too many changes. But in the days of reality TV, American Idol and YouTube fame, the whole idea of becoming a star is now a bit different than it once was. (It seems that the drive for stardom has only increased, however.)

Clint Eastwood is famously interested in music — jokes about Paint Your Wagon aside, he has composed many of the scores for his own films (and been Oscar-nominated for one) and this makes an impressive career turn. Hereafter may have come and gone last year, but he plans to shoot J. Edgar within the next couple months, and then has this penciled in for the fall. By the time this shoots, he'll be 81. Say what you want about the latter days of his directorial career, but the guy makes just about everyone else look lazy.