J.K. Simmons is heading into the wild—literally.
The Whiplash Oscar winner is set to star alongside Brad Pitt in Heart of the Beast, an action-packed survival thriller directed by David Ayer for Paramount Pictures.
This marks Simmons’ second time working with Ayer, having previously teamed up on the 2005 crime drama Harsh Times, and his third time sharing the screen with Pitt after The Mexican (2001) and the star-studded comedy Burn After Reading (2008).
Clearly, the pair have a bit of a cinematic history together.
Written by Cameron Alexander, who is also on board as an executive producer, Heart of the Beast follows a former Army Special Forces soldier and his retired combat dog as they fight to survive after a plane crash leaves them stranded in the harsh Alaskan wilderness.
Expect a gripping tale of man versus nature—plus, a heroic canine sidekick, which automatically makes any movie 10 times better.
Simmons, of course, is no stranger to stealing scenes.
He won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar, Golden Globe, and SAG Award for his intense performance as a ruthless music professor in Whiplash (2014).
He’s also well known for playing the iconic J. Jonah Jameson in multiple Spider-Man movies, spanning both the Sam Raimi and Jon Watts-directed franchises.
His other notable credits include La La Land, Juno, Being the Ricardos—which earned him another Oscar nomination—and the upcoming holiday action flick Red One starring Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans.
Speaking of Spider-Man, Simmons recently addressed the ongoing speculation about whether his fast-talking, web-slinger-hating newspaper boss will return for Spider-Man 4.
When asked about it in an interview with Screen Rant, he stayed tight-lipped, saying, “No spoilers. Sorry, I’m not telling.”
Classic J.K.
