Dano and Cox already played together in the 2001 Sundance hit L.I.E. directed by Michael Cuesta. Dano went on starring in a dozen independent US films such as Fast Food Nation, The Ballad of Jack And Rose, and Little Miss Sunshine (for which he won an Empire Award in the UK for Best Male Newcomer). For his recent role as Paul and Eli Sunday in The Will Be Blood, Dano was nominated for a BAFTA Award as Best Supporting Actor.
The Scottish actor Cox who found fame for his part as Hannibal Lecter in the 1986 film Manhunter, has appeared in over 40 films and TV productions, including the TV drama Nuremberg for which he won an Emmy award in 2001.
In The Good Heart, Cox plays Jacques (57), a cynical and misanthropic bar-owner who suffers from heart problems. While waiting at a hospital for the test results of his fifth heart attack, he is introduced to Lucas (25), (Dano) a young homeless man brought to the hospital because he tried to commit suicide. Jacques takes Lucas under his wing.
The Good Heart is Kári's third feature film after his successful Icelandic debut Noi Albinoi (2003) and his Danish film Dark Horse which screened at Cannes' Un Certain Regard in 2005. Other key crew members in Good Heart include the Danish cinematographer Rasmus Videbæk and editor Daniel Dencik who both worked on Noi Albinoi.
The project which has been several years in development is produced by Skuli Fr. Malmquist and Thor S. Sigurjonsson for Zik Zak Productions, and executive produced by Joni Sighvatsson, Robin O'Hara and Scott Macaulay. The film is co-produced by Ex Nihilo in France, Forensic Films in the US and Nimbus Film in Denmark, with support from the Danish Film Institute, the Icelandic Film Centre, Eurimages and Nordisk Film & TV Fond.
Commenting on the casting announcement, Malmquist told Nordisk Film & TV Fond: "We are very excited to have Paul and Brian on board, consummate professionals and terrific actors, who share a great chemistry that is invaluable to the project. During the last couple of weeks of rehearsals they have proven that they fit the roles of Lucas and Jacques perfectly. Furthermore, we hope to announce the name of a very talented European actress very shortly."
International sales on the film are handled by Wild Bunch, with Cinetic Media as US representative.