THE CARD COUNTER: Paul Schrader Rants On Social Media After Production Shutdown

The director took to Facebook to complain about delays related to COVID-19 pandemic

Someone tested positive for the novel coronavirus on Paul Schrader’s set and he is not happy about it.

The Card Counter, Schrader’s next film, shut down production in Biloxi, Mississippi after an actor tested positive for the virus. The film, which stars Oscar Isaac, Tiffany Haddish, Tye Sheridan, and Willem Dafoe, reportedly had only five days left of shooting.

Schrader claims that the actor who tested positive was just “a day player”, and lambasts the producers for cancelling the production.

“…I would have shot through hellfire rain to complete the film,” Schrader said. “I’m old and asthmatic, what better way than to die on the job?”

Barbed critiques

Schrader is no stranger to spicy-hot Facebook takes, as his public feed is full of them. In November 2018 he received significant backlash while arguing for the reconciliation of Kevin Spacey’s career. Schrader essentially played the “separate the art from the artist” defense, and that “Spacey should be punished for any crimes his actual person created….[b]ut not for art, [because a]ll art is a crime.”

Many industry figures, including First Reformed’s distributor A24, saw this as a rather damning gaffe during the film’s award season run. (He later claimed that he was put him in “FB jail” until the Oscars were over because of it.)

In the cards

Deadline describes The Card Counter as follows:

William Tell (Isaac), a gambler and former serviceman…just wants to play cards. His spartan existence on the casino trail is shattered when he is approached by Cirk (Sheridan), a vulnerable and angry young man seeking help to execute his plan for revenge on a military colonel (Dafoe). Tell sees a chance at redemption through his relationship with Cirk. Gaining backing from mysterious gambling financier La Linda (Haddish), Tell takes Cirk with him on the road, going from casino to casino until the unlikely trio set their sights on winning the World Series of poker in Las Vegas. But keeping Cirk on the straight-and-narrow proves impossible, dragging Tell back into the darkness of his past.

The producers of The Card Counter say it will resume filming at a safer time. It is yet another project taking a hit in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Check out our article documenting some coronavirus-related cancellations, as well as IndieWire’s frequently-updating list.

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