Shia LaBeouf and Mel Gibson are set to star in the upcoming dark comedy Rothchild. Stan & Ollie director Jon S. Baird is on board to direct the movie, which was just announced at Cannes. Both LaBeouf and Gibson are no strangers to controversy and they have both been pretty busy over the past few years. Gibson is also starring in another comedy titled Fatman, where he plays Santa Claus along with the upcoming action movie Force of Nature.

Rothchild centers on Shia LaBeouf as Becket Rothchild, who is the bastard son of a mother who was disowned by her wealthy family for eloping with a jazz musician. Becket has never really been given a fair shake at life and he is on a quest to change all of that. Now that he is all grown up, Becket is said to have "charisma, intelligence, and a flair for opportunity," which puts him on his journey to take what is rightfully his. By looking at his surroundings, he finds that the gap between the richest 1% in New York is quite different from his current life.

So, Becket Rothchild hatches a plan to infiltrate his family since they have no idea who he is. There are nine Rothchild family members who stand in his way, including Whitelaw Becket (Mel Gibson), who is described as Becket's "sinister grandfather." He sets up to accidentally meet all of them and falls into a life amongst "frat boys, hipster artists, and reality TV stars." Will he be able to take back what is rightfully his? Regardless, it sounds like a good social commentary for today's times.

HanWay Films purchased the international sales rights for Rothchild and will add the dark comedy to their Cannes slate. CAA Media Finance is handling the North American rights to the movie. HanWay Managing Director Gabrielle Stewart is excited to work with director Jon S. Baird and released a statement, which also gives some more details about the movie. You can read the statement below.

"Baird has proved to be brilliant at edgy dark comedy bringing Irvine Welsh's Filth to life, then showed his mainstream chops with the beloved Stan & Ollie. Here he has a chance to combine all his skills and bring to life a real twist on the classic rags to riches story. The divide between the super-rich and the rest of the world is an ever growing one, and it's both fun and fascinating to delve into its inner bowels along with our hero trying to scramble to the top and claim his piece."

There is currently no release date set for Rothchild. However, Shia LaBeouf's Honey Boy, which was recently acquired by Amazon Studios, is set to premiere November 8th. The show business drama is loosely based on LaBeouf's own life growing up in the entertainment business and his relationship with his "law-breaking, alcohol-abusing" father over the course of a decade. LaBeouf plays his father in the movie. The Hollywood Reporter was the first to announce the Rothchild news.