Valerie Faris and Jonathan Dayton Exit 'The Good Luck of Right Now'

After the adaptation of Matthew Quick's novel Silver Linings Playbook brought became an awards darling a couple of years ago, the rush was on to snap up the rights to more of the author's work. Brie Larson, red hot after Short Term 12 thrust her into the spotlight, was brought on to star in The Good Luck of Right Now, which Mike White would pen based on Quick's most recent book. But the pieces really came together earlier when Valerie Faris and Jonathan Dayton (Little Miss Sunshine) came on to direct, however now the project has run into a little bit of bad luck.

Deadline reports that Dayton and Faris have exited the film due to the infamous "creative disagreements", only it's over the whole casting process. Whether that includes the casting of Larson, who apparently isn't signed yet, remains unclear. Faris and Dayton seemed like a perfect fit considering their past experience on Little Miss Sunshine, another film that found humor in the troubles of dysfunctional characters.

It's possible this gives room for the duo to finally get cracking on the Mister Rogers biopic, I'm Proud of You, which they have long been attached to.

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'Little Miss Sunshine' Duo to Direct Matthew Quick's 'The Good Luck of Right Now'

After his novel The Silver Linings Playbook became a hit film with Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper, Matthew Quick's work has become a popular commodity around Hollywood. James Ponsoldt (The Spectacular Now) has Quick's Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock in his sights, and now the duo behind Little Miss Sunshine will bring his next book to the big screen.

Valerie Faris and Jonathan Dayton, who most recently helmed the excellent comedy Ruby Sparks, will direct The Good Luck of Right Now. Due to be published next February, the story follows 38-year-old Bartholomew Neil, who has no idea how to function after his mother, an obsessive Richard Gere fan, gets sick and dies. With the help of his red-headed counselor, a struggling priest, a a shy female librarian aka the "girlbrarian", her foul-mouthed brother, and the spirit of Gere himself, Neil goes on a wild road trip to Canada and embarks on a journey of self-discovery. Mike White (School of Rock) will adapt the script.

Faris and Dayton have been able to strike just the right balance of quirkiness and heaviness before, so this should be a perfect fit for them. Hopefully they can get Gere to play himself? How could they not? It's unclear whether this will disrupt their plans to direct Mister Rogers film I'm So Proud of You.

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Trailer Time: 'Ruby Sparks', starring Paul Dano and Zoe Kazan

Anybody who has at one point or another imagined themselves as a novelist, including yours truly, has created a female character who embodies every physical and personality trait they hold most dear. But what would they do if that girl suddenly showed up on their doorstep? And would she be everything they'd hoped her to be, or the greatest disappointment ever?

That's sorta what Paul Dano's character is going through in Ruby Sparks, a quirky new meta-comedy directed by Valerie Faris and Jonathan Dayton, their first film since Little Miss Sunshine. Formerly title He Loves Me and co-written by star Zoe Kazan, the story follows a successful writer(Dano) who can't seem to come back with a strong follow-up. Unlucky in love and struggling with writer's block, he creates a character named Ruby Sparks who is the perfect girl of his dreams, only to wake up one day and find her in his kitchen.

The tone has a touch of Charlie Kauffman, which is definitely a good thing, but what's going to matter most is how they play with the meta nature of the story. They seem to be aiming for the light romantic comedy crowd, and with Dano and the always great Kazan they should be able to pull that off effortlessly. Part of me expects more, though, so I'm assuming there's more to the story than this trailer reveals. Featuring an astounding cast with Steve Coogan, Chris Messina, Deborah Ann Woll, Antonio Banderas, Elliott Gould, Annette Bening, Alia Shawkat, and Aasif Mandvi, Ruby Sparks opens on July 25th. Check out the trailer below....

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