John Turturro must be a very pleased man right now, word is that he has persuaded Woody Allen to appear in Fading Gigolo, bearing in mind that Allen rarely appears in movies that he isn’t directing or at least having some element of creative control. Turturro will star and direct in the movie which he penned himself, clearly Allen has great belief in the project which is a compliment to Mr. Turturro. The film sees him playing the err, escort for want of a better word with Allen playing his pimp. Have you ever heard of a better premise in advance of a movie? This could be brilliant; the plot involves the two cash strapped buddies who decide to enter the Gigolo business in an attempt to make some money. Unfortunately for them they attract the unwelcome attention and anger of the local Jewish community in the process; they decide to operate under the street names of “Virgil” and “Bongo”. The plot gets complicated by Turturro’s love interest, a Jewish widow, no word on further casting as yet but Sharon Stone and Sofia Vergara have been confirmed for supporting roles, although more details have yet to be revealed. The last time Allen appeared in someone else’s project was for Alfonso Arau’s Picking Up The Pieces some 12 years ago. Shooting is set to begin in April, seeing as Allen doesn’t do other people’s films that often, the signs are looking great for this one, I personally can’t wait.
