Robert Redford is in talks to play neither of the titular roles in Disney’s upcoming remake of the 1977 children’s film Pete’s Dragon, according to Entertainment Weekly. As previously reported, the film will be directed by David Lowery (Ain’t Them Bodies Saints) and stars Boardwalk Empire‘s Oakes Fegley as Pete, both of whom will bring their respective talents for intense drama to a premise where Pete loses his parents in a car accident, then goes apple-picking with a 25-foot-tall cartoon dragon.
Redford is in discussions to play “a local who tells tales about the dragons, much to his community’s disbelief.” That Redford wasn’t approached to voice the dragon could be confirmation that, rather than actual dialogue, the movie will stick with Elliot the Dragon’s original vernacular, which sounds kind of like Goofy hungover while trying to give directions, and could really be done by any old voice actor. Anyway, the doomsayer role should work out fine for Redford—he’s been an environmental activist for years, and he’s probably used to people not believing him.