In shocking news, Josh and Benny Safdie — acclaimed filmmaker sibling duo — will be splitting up ahead of their next project that is set to star Adam Sandler for Netflix.
Jeff Sneider of Above the Line broke the news that Josh and Benny will be going their own way, at least for now. The upcoming film, while untitled, was said to be set in the world of sports memorabilia and had an A-list cast including Sandler, Gael Garcia Bernal, Megan Thee Stallion, and Ben Affleck.
But it appears that Josh Safdie will now direct the film solo whenever it should happen. Sneider's report added that the decision by Benny to leave the project had nothing to do with the controversy surrounding the Safdie's producing partner Sebastian Bear-McClard.
Now, in fairness, this wouldn't be the first time that one of the Safdies split off on their own. Josh directed The Pleasure of Being Robbed by himself in 2008, but the rest of their feature films including Good Time and Uncut Gems have been a joint venture.
The Safdie brothers have risen to fame in recent years thanks to the aforementioned Uncut Gems. The A24 film made $50 million at the box office on a budget of $19 million and delivered one of Adam Sandler's best performances. It was such a success that Sandler would want to collaborate again, that being in this untitled sports memorabilia film.
While there's no clear answer on why the duo is splitting up, it's important to note that Benny Safdie has done projects on his own as an actor. He did star in their film Good Time with Robert Pattinson, but he had a significant role in Licorice Pizza a couple of years back and was recently in the fantastic Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. He'll also appear in Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer later this summer.
This is sad news for fans of the Safdies or independent filmmaking as a whole, but Sneider does remain optimistic that the brothers will reunite once again down the line. Let's hope that it's a Coen brothers-type situation.
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