Jack’s Back With Linklater for ‘Bernie’

Anyone hoping for a return to form for Jack Black may be interested to learn that The Hollywood Reporter brings news that both the rotund funnyman and indie auteur-turned Hollywood player Richard Linklater are reteaming to make black comedy Bernie – a macabre-sounding tale of a mortician (Black) who befriends a rich widow (Shirley MacLaine), only to then kill her and keep up the pretence that she is still alive.

On the surface this sounds suspiciously like a retread of ‘classic’ 80’s comedy Weekend at Bernie’s, but it’s actually loosely based upon a true-life crime some years back.

The duo’s last collaboration, School of Rock, was a success for both, establishing Black as a bankable stand-alone lead and opening up the Hollywood gates for Linklater. Although the subject matter this time around doesn’t exactly read ‘family-friendly’, there’s obviously hope that these guys can come of with the goods again.