Summary

Joel Coen’s 2021 film, “The Tragedy of Macbeth,” marked his first solo directing credit without the involvement of his brother, Ethan Coen. However, Ethan has also pursued his own solo projects, including the 2022 documentary “Jerry Lee Lewis: Trouble in My Mind” and the upcoming comedy “Drive-Away Dolls.” Despite their separate projects, there is good news for fans as Ethan and Joel Coen will be reuniting for a new project after a five-year hiatus, ensuring another addition to their impressive body of work.

When The Tragedy of Macbeth was released in 2021, there was some cause for concern. After 18 films, including such classics as Raising Arizona, Fargo, and The Big Lebowski, Joel Coen, for the first time, offered audiences a movie that did not feature the involvement of his younger brother, Ethan Coen. However, Joel Coen’s sole directing credit wasn’t a first for the filmmaker.

From his debut, 1984’s Blood Simple, through 2003’s Intolerable Cruelty, Joel Coen was credited as director, but it was understood that the films were equal collaborations with his sibling, who had co-written, and produced all of the projects as well. Ethan Coen is also listed as the uncredited director of each film on IMDb. In fact, it wasn’t until 2004’s The Ladykillers that both brothers were credited equally.

Update August 6, 2023: This article has been updated following the recent delay of Drive-Away Dolls from September 23, 2023 to February 23, 2024.

But the 2021 Shakespeare adaptation, which contained a tour de force performance from Denzel Washington as Lord Macbeth, was the first truly solo Joel Coen production. Since Ethan has also embarked on his own solo projects, including the 2022 achieved documentary Jerry Lee Lewis: Trouble in My Mind and the upcoming comedy Drive-Away Dolls. So, does this mean the siblings have made their last film together? Take a look at what the future holds for the Coen Brothers.

Working on Separate Projects
A24

The last film both Joel and Ethan Coen worked on together as directors was 2018’s The Ballad of Buster Scruggs. While the COVID-19 pandemic partially could be seen as a big gap in their filmography, it also appears the directors wanted to pursue different projects. Joel decided to direct The Tragedy of Macbeth in March 2019 while Ethan sat it out. Many long-time Coen Brothers fans questioned the decision.

There had previously been concerns that Ethan Coen was out of the filmmaking game altogether. In August 2021, Longtime Coen brothers composer Carter Burwell, whose career began with them on Blood Simple, told Score: The Podcast, “Ethan just didn’t want to make movies anymore.” This made it into a bigger deal than just Ethan Coen not being interested in his brother’s Shakespeare passion project. It also belies the fact that he actually made a movie instead of working on The Tragedy of Macbeth.

Related: A Serious Man: The Most Underrated Coen Brothers Movie, Explained

Ethan Coen’s first solo film effort, the 2022 documentary Jerry Lee Lewis: Trouble in Mind, screened at the Cannes Film Festival in May of the same year, where it received praise from critics. Produced by A24, along with musician Mick Jagger, the film makes use exclusively of archive footage to portray the life and career of the titular rock ‘n’ roll legend. Perhaps, then, Burwell meant Ethan didn’t want to make scripted comedies or dramas anymore. But that doesn’t seem to be the case either.

Ethan’s Upcoming Solo Film
Focus Features

In April 2022, it was announced that Ethan would be directing a new film, described as a “lesbian road trip project” and that he would be doing so without the involvement of his brother, Joel. That film became Drive-Away Dolls, which was initially scheduled to be released in September 2023 but was pushed back to February 2024 due to the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike.

Co-written by Ethan’s wife, Tricia Cooke, the story will follow two twenty-something girls, Jamie (played by Margaret Qualley) and Marian (Geraldine Viswanathan), who embark on an unexpected road trip to Tallahassee in order to escape the harsh realities of their lives. Things don’t go to plan, however, when they cross paths with a group of inept criminals. After the trailer dropped in June 2023, many commented on an apparent departure from the brothers’ signature style. The idea of main characters being on the run from criminals is certainly reminiscent of both Fargo and O Brother, Where Art Thou. Nevertheless, the mix of quirky comedy and adrenaline-filled action feels fresh and distinctive from the brothers’ collaborations.

While speaking with Collider, Ethan also acknowledged another way in which Drive-Away Dolls is different from what’s come before.

“There are sex scenes!… This movie, the action stuff—and there’s a lot of action stuff—and the sex stuff—and there’s a lot of sex stuff—are interesting cutting exercises if we want to talk specifically about cutting in weirdly different ways. Cutting a sex scene is…Joel and I have not done that! You go, “Huh!” [Laughs] It’s interesting.”

It doesn’t stop at sex, though. Tricia Cooke also noted that the film’s LGBTQ+ themes make it stand out.

And it’s a queer movie. But aside from that, when you watch it you’ll say, “Oh, okay, this makes sense,” and you know it’s their body of work for sure.

How true that statement is, we’ll have to wait and see.

Is Joel the One Who Is Taking a Break?
FX

Meanwhile, since The Tragedy of Macbeth, Joel Coen hasn’t worked on any projects, solo or otherwise. It, therefore, seems more accurate that he’s the one that has been taking a break from filmmaking for the past couple of years. Ethan Coen has long held separate careers as a playwright with successful runs on Broadway and an author of a few critically acclaimed novels.

Related: John Goodman: Every Role in a Coen Brothers Movie, Ranked

In contrast, Joel Coen’s career has been completely dominated by the 19 films he’s made since 1984, with the 42 episodes of FX’s Fargo television series (2014-present) he’s co-produced with his brother on top of that. Few would argue that he had earned himself a break. The 68-year-old himself told the New York Times that there was “probably something healthy in taking a break.” The break, however, looks like it’s about to come to an end.

The Brothers Will Work Together Again
Gramercy Pictures 

In the same interview with Score: The Podcast, Burwell also relayed that “a ton of scripts they’ve written together that are sitting on various shelves,” and “I hope maybe they get back to some of those because I’ve read some, and they’re great.”

While promoting his Jerry Lee Lewis doc, Ethan confessed to the AP that when working on his own, he would hit snags that made him miss his brother:

“Many times, there are all these problems when you go, oh f***. You’re stuck, this doesn’t work. And I’d think, Joel would have an idea what to do here. So, where the f*** is he?”

On the same note, Joel Coen said in that aforementioned New York Times interview that trying to make a movie without Ethan was like “having one eye put out.”

Indeed, in an interview with Empire in July 2023, Ethan Coen revealed that, after a five-year hiatus, he and his brother, Joel, would be reuniting to work on a new project. Details have yet to be released. However, it is believed that the new film will take precedence over other projects the directors currently have in the works.

The news would’ve come as a relief to fans of the sibling’s work who were, no doubt, beginning to worry if the brothers would ever work together again. The filmmaking collaboration between Joel and Ethan Coen is arguably one of the most influential, iconic, and acclaimed directing duos in the history of cinema. It would’ve been a bitter pill to swallow if there was never going to be another production by the pair again. Thankfully, at least one new addition to their impressive body of work is guaranteed, meaning movie lovers everywhere can breathe a sigh of relief.