Before the premiere of their latest collaboration, Blue Moon, at the Berlin Film Festival, Richard Linklater and Ethan Hawke revealed they are already working on their 10th film together.
Blue Moon marks the duo’s first project in over a decade since 2014’s Boyhood. Over their careers, Linklater and Hawke have teamed up on nine feature films, including the acclaimed Before trilogy, The Newton Boys, and Fast Food Nation.
When asked whether fans would have to wait another ten years for their next collaboration, Linklater responded, “I sure hope not. There’s this thing we’re working on, it’s kind of a historical piece, a 19th-century thing.
Hopefully, he’s a big part of that. But until it’s financed and ready to go, I never really talk about things too much just because they get frustrating.”
The Oscar-nominated filmmaker elaborated, “There’s enough pressure already… just to see how films come together. Each one’s a miracle. I don’t know how films get made—I just feel like every time, I get lucky, and it happens. It’s hard, but it’s not real until it’s real.”
Hawke expressed a desire to share more details but admitted feeling “nervous,” saying, “I’m dying to, but I’m always worried. I want to get it financed.
We’ve got something we’ve been working on for a long time, and it seems like it’s finally ready. And I feel like the world is ready for it, and we’re done with it.”
He added that he’s “not trying to be coy” but wants to avoid jeopardizing the project’s funding, explaining, “I just don’t want to blow it and talk about it publicly, then people say, ‘That sounds like a bad idea,’ and it never gets financed.”
Earlier in the day, during Blue Moon’s Berlin press conference, the pair discussed artistic risks, with Hawke voicing concerns about financial priorities overshadowing creative ideas.
“When we prioritize money at all costs, what we get is generic material that appeals to the most people, and we’re told that’s the best,” Hawke said.
“It’s a dance we all do together. If you love offensive art and you want it, demand it. Right now, people don’t think they’ll make any money off it, so it doesn’t get made.”
Blue Moon follows renowned American lyricist Lorenz Hart (Hawke), the former creative partner of Richard Rodgers, as he grapples with alcoholism and depression on the opening night of Oklahoma!, Rodgers’ first collaboration with Oscar Hammerstein II.
Alongside Hawke, the film stars Andrew Scott as Rodgers, Margaret Qualley as Elizabeth Weiland, and Bobby Cannavale as a bartender named Eddie.
This marks the fifth time Hawke and Linklater have attended the Berlin Film Festival together, three of those for the Before trilogy. With Before Sunrise celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, the inevitable question arose: Is there a fourth installment in store for Jesse and Celine’s love story?
Linklater admitted, “There’s still nothing on the books” as he hasn’t “had the good idea.” Hawke echoed this sentiment, saying, “There’s something about the third one that felt like it might be over.”
He elaborated, “The first one opens with them watching a couple in their 40s arguing on a train, and then we become that couple. So it feels finished, like the circle is complete.”
However, Hawke didn’t entirely rule out the possibility of revisiting the story, saying, “Something could happen that might change that—but it hasn’t happened yet.”
He added that the team occasionally checks in with each other: “Sometimes someone has an idea, and everyone says, ‘Yes!’ Other times, everyone goes, ‘Nah, I don’t like it.’” Blue Moon premieres at the Berlin Film Festival on Tuesday night.
