Julia Butters, who had a breakout performance in Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon A Time in Hollywood, will join Spielberg's next film The Fabelmans, which is loosely based on his childhood in Arizona. She will play the sister to the young, aspiring filmmaker, played by Gabriel LaBelle.

Julia Butters will be joining a few other key players in this family. Michelle Williams is set to play a role inspired by Spielberg's mother, however, with a different voice, while Paul Dano will play a role inspired by Spielberg's father. Seth Rogen is also in the cast playing a role inspired by Spielberg's favorite uncle. Sam Rechner will also be playing a fellow classmate of Spielberg. For all of the cast so far, this will mark the first time they have worked with Spielberg.

As this is a personal project for the director, Spielberg will be co-writing the script with Tony Kushner. Steven Spielberg will take on screenwriting duties for the first time since 2001's A.I. Kushner has penned several other Spielberg projects including Munich and Lincoln. Spielberg and Kushner will also be producing the film along with Kristie Macosko Krieger. The Fabelmans is also being made by Amblin Entertainment, Spielberg's production company.

According to Deadline, Spielberg has discussed his childhood in Arizona many times throughout the years and has spoken about how "growing up in Arizona was an inspiration for many of his films from story themes to actual characters." In 2017, HBO debuted the documentary Spielberg, which dove into the life and career of the director. However, this is the first time that Spielberg will be providing a true perspective into his life, even if it is loosely based off real events.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Arnold Spielberg, the director's father, was a "towering figure in the director's life." His father bought him an 8m camera and encouraged him to make movies, even funding many of the projects that Spielberg worked on in his youth. His father really helped Spielberg develop his passion and led Spielberg to pursue this career. However, his parents got divorced and this "strained the relationship, and father figures became key persons, with flaws and need of redemptions, in many of Spielberg's movies." Arnold Spielberg died in 2020 at the age of 103.

Butters only had a few scenes in Tarantino's Once Upon A Time in Hollywood, but she made those scenes memorable. For those who don't remember, she played Rick Dalton's (Leonardo DiCaprio) co-star on the Western being filmed. She stole the scene for being a highly intelligent and cultured kid who provided some kind words of wisdom to Dalton's character. Butters is currently filming the next Russo Brothers project, The Gray Man, starring alongside Ryan Gosling and Chris Evans.

Before The Fabelmans arrives, Spielberg also directed the remake of West Side Story starring Ansel Elgort and Rachel Zegler. West Side Story was supposed to come out in 2020, but ended up being delayed a year as many movies were due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The musical will premiere in theaters on December 10, 2021. This comes from Deadline.