Shia LaBeouf, Julie Christie and John Hurt are starring in the late Anthony Minghella-scripted segment of “New York, I Love You,” an anthology of 12 short films set in each of the city’s five boroughs.
“Love” is being helmed by a coterie of directors, including Natalie Portman, who is making her writing and directing debut.
Those cast in the anthology film include Hayden Christensen, Rachel Bilson, Chris Cooper, Anton Yelchin, Drea de Matteo, Ethan Hawke and Kevin Bacon.
Among those directing are such notables as Allen Hughes, Brett Ratner and Scarlett Johansson. Johansson’s entry follows the journey of a lonely man and his vision of the city.
The movie follows on the heels of the similarly formatted “Paris, je t’aime,” which dealt with love encounters in the City of Lights.
The next city to get the anthology treatment, under what is being called the “Cities of Love” franchise, is Shanghai, followed by a location in South America and then Africa.
LaBeouf and Christie’s segment, written by the late Minghella and directed by Shekhar Kapur, who stepped in after the director died, centers on a woman who checks into a hotel that is in between worlds. There, she meets a young man and the two discover not only a mysterious connection but develop an understanding as to their situation. The short is described as being similar to Minghella’s breakout film, “Truly Madly Deeply.” Production is under way on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.
Marianne Maddalena, Emman¬uel Benbihy and Marina Grasic are producing “New York.”
“New York” is produced in association with Sherazade Films and Benaroya Pictures, Visitor Pictures and Cities of Love. International distribution will be handled by QED International. The production services in New York are being handled by Plum Pictures, whose partners are executive producing.
Other acting names in “New York” include Carlos Acosta, Justin Bartha, Bradley Cooper, Irfan Khan, Cloris Leachman, Blake Lively, Emilie Ohana, Natalie Portman, Maggie Q, Shu Qi, Olivia Thirlby, Eli Wallach, Saul Williams, Robin Wright Penn, Anton Yelchin and Ugur Yucel.
LaBeouf next stars in “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” and “Eagle Eye.” He is repped by Endeavor, John Crosby Management and lawyer Matt Saver.
Christie, enjoying a late-career resurgence, is coming off an Oscar nomination for her work in Sarah Polley’s “Away From Her.” She is repped by Endeavor.
Portman, who most recently starred in “The Other Boleyn Girl,” is repped by CAA and Brillstein Entertainment Partners.
