Melissa Leo dropping of the f-bomb during her acceptance speech for The Fighter at this past Sunday's 83rd Annual Academy Awards ceremony may not be considered proper etiquette for the Oscars, but it certainly fit the role she was winning for.
It's all the more appropriate then that Leo's next onscreen appearance (after this fall's Red State, that is) will be as another overbearing maternal figure in an indie dramedy, titled Predisposed, alongside The Social Network's Jesse Eisenberg and 30 Rock's Tracy Morgan.
Oscar-nominated screenwriter Ron Nyswaner (Philadelphia) co-wrote the short film Predisposed back in 2009; Vulture says he will make his directorial debut by now turning it into a feature-length picture. Leo is actually reprising her role from that original short, and will once again portray a drug-addled mother who's destined for rehab on the same day her high-achieving son (Eisenberg) is set for an interview at Julliard.
That initially tedious situation is further complicated by the fact that Leo's character lacks health insurance and must show up under the influence in order to be admitted to rehab. Meanwhile, her drug dealer (Morgan) becomes tangled up in a feud with a fellow illicit chemical salesman, so to speak - and you know those things never end well.
The one-two punch of Leo and Eisenberg doing what they do best is reason enough to be interested in seeing how Predisposed turns out, though Morgan's involvement could be seen as more of a mixed blessing. He's been trying his hand at more serious fare as of late, and will also appear in the grim crime drama The Son of No One this year. It's still hard to overlook the fact that this is the guy who also had to handle Danny Glover's...bathroom needs in Death at a Funeral, or was stuck being the (unfunny) loud-mouthed comic relief in Cop Out.
On the other hand, it'd be more fair to say that Morgan's taken on some poorly-written comedic roles in his time, and that, as he's shown on 30 Rock, he isn't without talent. Perhaps Predisposed will give Morgan a chance to shine - even with his character going by the name of "Sprinkles."
Predisposed is scheduled to begin filming this summer.
Source: Vulture