Clint Eastwood has cast a promising up-and-comer in a supporting role in his currently untitled Matt Damon/Morgan Freeman film about Nelson Mandela, rugby and apartheid. And Clint will be particularly hoping that this young actor makes it big – for it’s his son, Scott.
Scott – often credited as Scott Reeves, in order to render that famous surname a non-issue – will appear as a rugby player on the South African national team in the movie, loosely based on John Carlin’s book, Playing The Enemy: Nelson Mandela And The Game That Made A Nation.
Damon is playing the former Springboks captain, Francois Pienaar, while Freeman is playing the role that Eastwood believes he was born to play: Mandela.
It won’t be the first time that Reeves – sorry, Scott Eastwood – has been cast in one of his father’s films. The tall, blond actor, who has his father's piercing eyes, had small parts in Flags Of Our Fathers and Gran Torino. This would appear to be his biggest role to date, though – and, with his 23rd birthday coming up on Saturday, he’s sure to have one heck of a celebration.
Clint has often kept it in the family – he cast his eldest daughter, Alison, in a number of films, and notably as the female lead in Midnight In The Garden of Good & Evil, while his eldest son, Kyle, has contributed to the soundtrack of six of his movies.
Anthony Peckham wrote the script for the movie, which is currently filming in South Africa. Warner Bros. and Spyglass Entertainment are funding the movie, which is almost certain to be an Oscar frontrunner next year.