When it rains, it pours for director Steve McQueen. After keeping a relatively low profile since the success of 12 Years A Slave, McQueen has been linked to two new films in as many days. News broke yesterday that he’s directing a biopic about singer and activist Paul Robeson, and now, according to Variety, McQueen is also set to bring a heist thriller to the big screen.
McQueen will write, direct, and produce the film, which is based on a ’80s British miniseries called Widows about four women who are left widowed when their husbands die in a failed armed robbery. Naturally, the women decide to come together and finish the job. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the film will take place in a contemporary U.S. city and McQueen will likely change the film’s title to something a little catchier than Widows. Depending on the film’s tone, this could be a chance for McQueen to put aside the darker themes he explored in 12 Years A Slave, Shame, and Hunger and try out something a little lighter.
New Regency, the production company behind 12 Years A Slave, is set to produce the Widows adaptation, which Variety lists as McQueen’s “next film,” meaning his Robeson biopic will likely be produced further down the line. Meanwhile, the very busy McQueen also has TV shows in development at both HBO and the BBC.