Word of The End of the Tour first came when Jason Segel was cast as David Foster Wallace back in December 2013. At the time, little else was known about the film and news of the movie and the cast was met with trepidation by many. This includes Wallace’s estate, which has gone on the record opposing the film, saying “there is no way” that DFW would approve of the movie.
But just like Infinite Jest itself, The End of the Tour kept chugging along, day after day. Even showing up in The Stake’s backyard, filming at the Mall of America in the St. Paul suburbs. The first trailer for the film is released today.
Directed by James Ponsoldt, The End of the Tour tells the story of Wallace’s promotional tour for Infinite JEst. The tour was being covered by the journalist David Lipsky for Rolling Stone. The two traveled together from city to city, exploring the meaning of being a writer, being nervous, and enjoying Die Hard (the first one).
The enchanting magic and perspiration-inducing talent off Wallace has seemed to many an impossible subject for a film, but Ponsoldt has instead turned from the man’s prose to his presence in literary and popular culture. The End of the Tour appears to be as much a buddy-picture about loneliness and isolation as it is a piece of Wallace hagiography.
The End of the Tour will be released July 31, 2015.
