Full Breakdown
Todd Haynes’ “De Noche” Revived with Pedro Pascal and Danny Ramirez
8/15/2026, 2:59:49 AM
Revival of the Queer Romance
Todd Haynes’ long-delayed film *De Noche* was originally set to star Joaquin Phoenix, who left the project in the summer of 2024 just days before filming was to begin in Guadalajara, Mexico. After the departure, the production was rescued in August 2025 when Pedro Pascal assumed the lead role, with Danny Ramirez joining as his co-star. The film, a 1930s-set gay romance, is now in post-production and has been described as an NC-17 title, though no release date has been announced.
Production Changes and Creative Decisions
The casting shift prompted several creative revisions. Producer Christine Vachon noted that the story’s setting was moved from Guadalajara to Mexico City, a change she said “ended up being better creatively.” The rewrite also allowed the team to incorporate a new dynamic between Pascal and Ramirez, portraying two men who leave Los Angeles for Mexico. Vachon, who has a long-standing collaboration with Haynes on films such as *Poison* (1991) and *Carol* (2015), highlighted that her prior work with Pascal on *Materialists* helped inform the casting decision.
Statements from Producer and Director
Vachon described Phoenix’s exit as “devastating” but emphasized that the “do-over” gave the project a fresh direction. She added that the revised film benefits from the new location and the chemistry between the leads. Haynes told Deadline that he and screenwriter Jon Raymond originally wrote the script with Phoenix and intended to share story credit with him, underscoring the collaborative origins of the screenplay.
Verbatim Quotes
- “If you take the Pollyanna, glass-half-full version of everything happens for a reason, maybe the reason was that this was a role Pedro was born to play. So was Danny [Ramirez],” — Christine Vachon, producer
- “We’ve worked together on Materialists. It started to be one of those things that was like ‘I wonder if [Pascal would do De Noche],’ and it worked out.” — The Moving Image. Vachon
Current Status and Outlook
As of August 14, 2026, the film remains in post-production with no announced distribution plan. Its NC-17 rating reflects the explicit nature of the romance, and the production team continues to seek a suitable release strategy.
