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Fresh off his first stint as a <\/span>Marvel hero<\/span><\/a>, Pedro Pascal could swoop in to save the day in a different way. The <\/span>The Last Of Us<\/span><\/i><\/a> actor is reportedly circling Joaquin Phoenix\u2019s abandoned role in <\/span>De Noche<\/span><\/i>, the Todd Haynes film Phoenix <\/span>abruptly departed<\/span><\/a> last August. The news comes <\/span>from <\/span>Deadline<\/span><\/i><\/a>, which reports that the plan is currently to revive production on the shuttered project next year in Guadalajara, Mexico, whenever Pascal is free.<\/span><\/p>\n While Haynes and co. may have to work around Pascal\u2019s busy schedule, it\u2019s better than not working at all. That\u2019s been the situation for the past year, after Phoenix ditched the project just five days before filming was set to begin. We still don\u2019t really know <\/span>why <\/span><\/i>Phoenix walked away, a decision made more puzzling by the fact that the <\/span>Joker<\/span><\/i><\/a> actor was purportedly one of the main forces pushing the project forward in the first place. \u201cThe whole experience was prompted by Joaquin,\u201d the director <\/span>told <\/span>IndieWire<\/span><\/i> in 2023<\/span><\/a>. \u201cIt was prompted by his daring, his desire to push through barriers and to really get into the uncomfortable places about this relationship. And yet it felt like a very organic process.\u201d Haynes also <\/span>previously stated<\/span><\/a> that he, Jon Raymond, and Phoenix \u201cshare the story credit\u201d for the project, which he described as \u201ca gay love story set in 1930s LA.\u201d Phoenix was also previously a proponent of the film\u2019s graphic intimate scenes. \u201cJoaquin was pushing me further and going \u2018no, let\u2019s go further,’\u201d Haynes said. \u201cThis will be an NC-17 film.\u201d Whatever the case may be, the project\u2019s investors were reportedly largely financing it based on Phoenix\u2019s star power, and pulled out as soon as he did. For months, the film looked to be D.O.A.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Pascal, however, seems to have enough money-earning potential to get the right people interested again. He just starred alongside Phoenix in <\/span>Eddington<\/span><\/i>, not to mention the two other major films\u2014<\/span>Materialists <\/span><\/i>and <\/span>Fantastic Four<\/span><\/i>\u2014he also led this summer. If he does lock down this deal, Pascal would star opposite Danny Ramirez, who was previously attached to the project (and coincidentally shared the screen with Pascal in the latest season of <\/span>The Last Of Us<\/span><\/i>). The two would play lovers who leave Los Angeles for Mexico. The film\u2019s future is still somewhat uncertain, but its release is looking a lot more plausible than it did just yesterday. <\/span><\/p>\n