This just in — the acclaimed director Barry Levinson is taking the reins to helm the upcoming David Mamet thriller Assassination. The movie has a star-studded cast ensemble led by Al Pacino. The Levinson-Mamet duo is returning to their respective roles for a project after 26 years. Their previous collaboration was the Oscar-nominated 1997 comedy Wag the Dog which starred Dustin Hoffman and Robert de Niro.

While Mamet himself was helming the project earlier, Levinson will be stepping into the directorial role and bringing his own thematic concerns to the project. The film is set in 1963 and follows the story of how infamous Chicago mobster Sam Giancana arranged the assassination of the 35th U.S. President John F. Kennedy from the mob’s perspective.

The film’s release date is far off for now but in addition to The Godfather actor playing the senior mob leader Tony Accardo, Viggo Mortensen, Shia LaBeouf, John Travolta, and Courtney Love are also included in the cast to breathe life into Mamet’s script. The team behind the scenes includes Robert Elswitt as the DOP, known for his work on There Will Be Blood and Nightcrawler. The JFK thriller will mark the fourth collaboration between Levinson and Pacino. Levinson previously directed Pacino in Paterno, You Don’t Know Jack and The Humbling.

A New Take on an Infamous Event

In this rendition penned by Mamet, Kennedy‘s assassination — which is hands down among the most conspiracy-rich events in U.S. history — is depicted as a planned murder masterminded by Chicago mafia key figure Sam Giancana. These events are portrayed as retaliation for JFK‘s actions that contradicted the very mob that allegedly supported his electoral campaign, which is also previously explored in Oliver Stone’s 1991 film JFK. There’s also an Eric Roth-produced miniseries on the life of US President John F. Kennedy in development.

Cameras are set to start rolling for the film soon. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.

via Collider