The wait continues. Fraternal film powerhouse the Coen Brothers are still solo acts.
During a recent Q&A, Joel Coen denied a report that he and brother Ethan were developing a project called “The Zebra Striped Hearse.” In fact, he was surprised to hear that anyone thought they had reunited. “Where’d that come from?,” he deadpanned, grabbing a big laugh.
Coen was in Berkeley for a film series at Berkeley’s Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA) called “Joel Coen in Person” when he broke the hearts of fanboys around the world.
“’No’ is the short answer,” Coen told the crowd, which had just watched his 1990 gangster fugue “Miller’s Crossing.”
The Zebra-Striped Hearse
Coen explained that there is a project called “The Zebra Striped Hearse,” but the Coen Brothers aren’t making it. “[It’s] something we wrote for someone else a few years ago, so maybe it’s going into production,” said Coen. “It was an original script, sort of, because someone had asked us to do an adaptation of these Ross Macdonald novels.”
Coen compared the writing process to how they wrote “Miller’s Crossing.” That script combined elements of Dashiell Hammett’s novels “The Glass Key” and “Red Harvest” into an original story.
“We sort of went, ‘Well, we’ll you write you one but we’ll make up our own story [with] the character in it.’ And that’s what ‘The Zebra Striped Hearse’ is. I don’t know who’s making it.”
“We’ll do it again at some point.”
The news is disappointing.
But Coen kept hope alive when he told a different crowd that a new Coen Brothers effort was only a matter of time. “I work with my brother,” he said. “We make the movies together. We’ve been doing it since we were 12 years old. We’re not doing it at the moment. I’m sure we’ll do it again at some point.”
There’s more to look forward to. Ethan Coen’s solo directorial debut, a road trip picture, is in-production. And “The Zebra Striped Hearse” sounds pretty cool, whoever may be directing it. Fans can also catch up on Joel Coen’s solo directorial debut with “The Tragedy of Macbeth.” The black-and-white stunner stars his wife and longtime collaborator Frances McDormand, who attended the screenings with Joel.
McDormand hosted her own event this week. “Women Talking” screened at BAMPFA Monday night. She produced and stars in the film. And it earned Academy Award nominations for best picture and best adapted screenplay.
Question for the parents: Have you shared any Coen Brothers pictures with your kids? Just Hudsucker Proxy?