Tilda Swinton to Tackle Auntie Mame Remake on Screen

Oscar winner Tilda Swinton is planning to play the title character in a remake of the film Auntie Mame, according to The New York Times. Swinton and director Luca Guadagnino, who helmed her recent film I Am Love (Il Sono L'Amore), are reportedly in the planning stage of the project, which would star Swinton as famous bon vivant Mame Dennis.

Auntie Mame, Patrick Dennis’ 1955 novel chronicling the adventures of a boy growing up with his eccentric aunt, was adapted for the Broadway stage by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee in 1956. Rosalind Russell famously created the part, and reprised her role in the Academy Award-nominated 1958 film. Lawrence and Lee later joined forces with composer/lyricist Jerry Herman to create a musical version of the piece, and Mame premiered on Broadway in 1966, starring Angela Lansbury in the title role. A film of the musical came out in 1974, starring Lucille Ball.

Swinton won an Oscar for her role in Michael Clayton. Her film credits include I Am Love (Il Sono L'Amore), The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Broken Flowers, The Deep End, Burn After Reading, The Chronicles of Narnia films and the recent We Need to Talk About Kevin.