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Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin Working on Jason Reitman's 'Labor Day'

by Ethan Anderton
June 16, 2011
Source: EW

Back in January of last year, it appeared as if director Jason Reitman would be taking on an adaptation of Labor Day. However, as we learned later in the year, he actually ended up reteaming with Juno writer Diablo Cody for Young Adult starring Charlize Theron. However, now it sounds like Reitman will return to the aforementioned adaptation and EW says Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin will star in the story that is described as a combination of a romance, coming-of-age tale and a thriller. The Joyce Maynard novel was just published in 2009 before Reitman and Up in the Air were nominated for Academy Awards.

Here's the official synopsis of the novel, and it sounds like something a little different for Reitman:

With the end of summer closing in and a steamy Labor Day weekend looming in the town of Holton Mills, New Hampshire, thirteen-year-old Henry—lonely, friendless, not too good at sports—spends most of his time watching television, reading, and daydreaming about the soft skin and budding bodies of his female classmates. For company Henry has his long-divorced mother, Adele—a onetime dancer whose summer project was to teach him how to foxtrot; his hamster, Joe; and awkward Saturday-night outings to Friendly's with his estranged father and new stepfamily. As much as he tries, Henry knows that even with his jokes and his "Husband for a Day" coupon, he still can't make his emotionally fragile mother happy. Adele has a secret that makes it hard for her to leave their house, and seems to possess an irreparably broken heart.

But all that changes on the Thursday before Labor Day, when a mysterious bleeding man named Frank approaches Henry and asks for a hand. Over the next five days, Henry will learn some of life's most valuable lessons: how to throw a baseball, the secret to perfect piecrust, the breathless pain of jealousy, the power of betrayal, and the importance of putting others—especially those we love—above ourselves. And the knowledge that real love is worth waiting for.

Obviously, Winslet will be playing the mother Adele, while Brolin is playing the convict Frank. Combine Reitman's perfect track record (at least in my eyes) of helming Thank You for Smoking, Juno and Up in the Air, and I can't help but be excited for any project on his slate. Reitman has a way of telling a different kind of coming-of-age tale whether its a pregnant teen in Juno, or a lost, disconnected man who fires people for a living in Up in the Air. Hopefully Young Adult will see release late this year, and he'll keep his record in tact. Otherwise it sounds like Labor Day will shoot next year in New England.

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