Richard E. Grant and Brian Cox (Succession) are set to star in an animated short project titled Wittgenstein’s Poker and it sounds like it tells an interesting story.

The project comes from filmmaker Christian De Vita and it tells the story of the “real-life encounter between two of the 20th century’s greatest philosophers: Ludwig Wittgenstein and Karl Popper.”

It’s explained that their notorious 1946 dispute, “known as the Cambridge Poker Incident, ended in one of them allegedly threatening the other with a red-hot fire poker.”

Grant will take on the role of Ludwig Wittgenstein while Karl Markovics (The Counterfeiters) will portray Karl Popper. Cox will play Bertrand Russell, who was also present during the infamous confrontation.

The synopsis reads: “This remarkable ensemble will breathe life into this unique historical moment.”

De Vita, previously worked as the lead storyboard artist on Wes Anderson’s Fantastic Mr. Fox, Tim Burton’s Frankenweenie, and his role as Series Director on the Disney Junior series PJ Masks.

The screenplay was written by Casey Cohen, and also serves as the film’s producer. The musical score will be composed by Oscar-winning British composer Stephen Warbeck (Billy Elliot).

The movie will be produced as a traditional 2D hand-drawn animation film, with  a watercolor style that produces say will “transport audiences into the intellectual battleground of these great philosophers, visualizing emotion through the main character’s journey to that fateful meeting.”

The director said: “Using a traditional 2D animation style, we aim to capture the intensity and brilliance of these iconic philosophers, creating a visually captivating narrative that will immortalize this historical moment on screen.”

This project is adapted from the book of the same name, written by two BBC journalists, David Edmonds and John Eidinow.

Source: Deadline