Geena Davis is headed from the Vegas strip to rugged Texas terrain. The Oscar winner is following up her guest spot as a casino entertainment director on “GLOW” by teaming up with Leena Yadav to tell the story of a Texas cowgirl in “Cowgirl’s Last Ride.” Deadline broke the news.
Hailing from Resonate Entertainment, the feature centers on Fay (Davis), “an ailing but still rebellious Texas cowgirl who escapes a Dallas nursing home to live what’s left of her life on her own terms,” the source summarizes. “She makes a perilous journey back to her native East Texas — first by truck, then by horse — while being pursued by her well-meaning adult son Randall (still to be cast), who can’t help but care about his mother despite the dysfunction he experienced as a child, and well into his adult life.”
Resonate co-founder Susan Cartsonis emphasized that Davis’ character “bucks gender stereotypes and speaks to the sacrifices that are made by women who break rules and forge their own path.”
Yadav is directing “Cowgirl’s Last Ride.” Her previous features include 2018’s “Rajma Chawal” and 2015’s “Parched.” When we asked Yadav’s advice for women directors, she said “If you have a story to tell, go out there and tell it. Don’t do it as a female: Do it as an individual who has a unique way of seeing the world and addressing the story. If being a woman restricts your attempts or opportunities, don’t give up,” she emphasized. “There will always be a way.”
Davis won an Oscar for “The Accidental Tourist” and received a nod for “Thelma & Louise.” She’ll accept the 2019 Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award at the Academy’s Governors Awards on October 27. Davis is being recognized for her work off-screen, which includes founding the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media, serving as chair of the California Commission on the Status of Women, and launching the Bentonville Film Festival to support women and inclusion in the entertainment industry.
Besides “GLOW,” Davis’ recent credits include “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Marjorie Prime.” She has a supporting role in Jessica Chastain-led assassin thriller “Eve,” which is currently in post-production.
