The Current War

How long would you wait for a movie?

Industrial Revolution drama ‘The Current War’ was postponed to 2018 following the Harvey Weinstein scandal. Star Michael Shannon chimes in on the delay and Weinstein allegations.

With Harvey Weinstein’s extensive history of sexual harassment and assault recently exposed, more women have come forward with new allegations of abuse. As the number of Weinstein’s accusers continues to grow, the film distribution company he co-founded with his brother Bob is reportedly negotiating a possible sale. The Weinstein Company has nine upcoming films on its slate, including The Current War; over the weekend, the potential awards contender had its release date pushed back from this fall to an undetermined date in 2018. But that’s not the only film that could be affected by the growing allegations against the company’s former executive.

Amidst the growing number of allegations against former Weinstein Company head Harvey Weinstein, the production studio he co-founded is looking to rebrand.

The only thing missing from the first trailer for The Current War is an “I’ve Got the Power” music cue. Instead, the trailer is scored with something vaguely reminiscent of The Social Network — hardly a coincidence as the film, starring Benedict Cumberbatch as Thomas Edison and Michael Shannon as George Westinghouse, is basically trying to do for the electric business what The Social Network did for Facebook.

The Rooney Mara and Joaquin Phoenix biblical drama gets pushed out of this year’s Oscar race for a new release date.

The Weinstein Company is gearing up for awards season early with announced release dates for two extremely high-profile upcoming films. The first, Mary Magdalene, which stars Rooney Mara, Joaquin Phoenix, and Chiwetel Ejiofor, will hit the big screen November 24, followed by The Current War, Benedict Cumberbatch and Michael Shannon’s historical drama, on December 22.

Remember that time when two of the greatest scientific minds in history battled for supremacy over the best way to turn on a lightbulb? The War of Currents took place in the late 1880s and early 1890s, and pitted Thomas Edison against George Westinghouse and Nikola Tesla in a battle for electric supremacy. The movie version of this that we’ve all been waiting for is arriving very soon, bearing the title The Current War, and Benedict Cumberbatch and Michael Shannon have already signed on to star as Edison and Westinghouse, respectively. Now, two more stars are looking to join the cast.

Two of the most enticing words in the english language: Michael Shannon. Attach that name to just about anything and you’ve automatically made it 100 percent more interesting. That may be the case with The Current War, as Shannon is in talks to join what could be a very, very early contender for the 2017 awards season. Benedict Cumberbatch is already set to star in the upcoming historical drama about the battle between Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse.