Meryl Streep, Colman Domingo, Bill Hader and Tom Waits have joined the A-list cast for the animated and live-action feature Lincoln in the Bardo.
They board the Starburns Industries hybrid film that already has Tom Hanks on board to star as U.S. President Abraham Lincoln in the live-action portion of the film, while Willem Dafoe, Jonathan Bailey and Peter Dinklage become voice characters in the stop-motion animation side.
Streep will voice four parts in the film: Abigail Blass, Elizabeth Crawford, one Angel sent to lure lost souls out of the bardo and a Demon trying to trap Willie Lincoln in the cemetery forever. Domingo will voice Thomas Havens, the ghost of a former slave seeking a history-changing union with Lincoln, while Hader will voice Eddie Baron and one of the Three Rakes, and Waits will voice Jaspar Randall, the ghost of a former dancehall performer and one of the Demons trying to capture Willie Lincoln.
Duke Johnson will direct Lincoln in the Bardo from a screenplay by George Saunders, adapted from his best-selling book that examines the death of the politician’s son, 11-year-old Willie Lincoln.
“The film employs a unique blend of stop-motion animation and live action to explore one of the most intimate moments of Lincoln’s life, centering on his relationship with his recently deceased eleven-year-old son. Blending history and imagination, the story unfolds through an unforgettable ensemble of characters — living and dead, historical and invented — to explore themes of love, empathy, and the human capacity for connection in the face of unimaginable grief,” a synopsis from the producers reads.
