Christoph Waltz might have scored the “uber bingo” with his Supporting Actor win at this past weekend’s Oscars, but it’s Viggo Mortensen who has picked up the good fortune today, since Waltz’ busy schedule means he’s had to drop out of playing Sigmund Freud in David Cronenberg’s The Talking Cure, leaving the way clear for Viggo & Dave: round three.
As Waltz switches instead to play a psycho in Water For Elephants, so Cronenberg has recruited Mortensen – who starred for him in A History Of Violence and Eastern Promises – to take on a less action-packed role in Cure.
Based on Christopher Hampton’s play, the story sees Freud disagreeing with his pupil, Carl Jung (Michael Fassbender) and Jung kicking off an affair with Sabina (Keira Knightley), an emotionally troubled young woman whose father brings her to him for treatment.
Cronenberg plans to start shooting in May, with a release date pencilled in for next year.