Finally, some good news: John Waters to write and direct Liarmouth

John Waters
John Waters
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Apparently not yet tired of being America’s foremost authority on filth, John Waters is returning to show us how it’s done. Announced earlier today on Deadline, Waters will write and direct a film adaptation of his first novel Liarmouth, released earlier this year. The movie would be his first in nearly two decades, with 2004’s A Dirty Shame, starring Tracey Ullman, being his last time behind the camera.

Since then, he’s been doing the whole man-about-town thing, harnessing an unmatched cultural ubiquity. Waters has become a clutch TV player, recontextualizing every show or movie he appears on. His guest spots play demographic whack-a-mole as he’s appeared in adult fare like Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit as well as children’s entertainment Mickey Mouse and, arguably, Alvin And The Chipmunks: The Road Chip.

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But it was his work on Liarmouth that brought him back to directing. “Liarmouth is the craziest thing I’ve written in a while, so maybe it’s fitting that my novel was shocking enough to jumpstart the engine of my film career,” Waters said. “Thrilled to be back in the movie business, hopefully to spread demented joy to adventuresome moviegoers around the world.”

Here’s the book synopsis:

Marsha Sprinkle: Suitcase thief. Scammer. Master of disguise. Dogs and children hate her. Her own family wants her dead. She’s smart, she’s desperate, she’s disturbed, and she’s on the run with a big chip on her shoulder. They call her Liarmouth—until one insane man makes her tell the truth.

This certainly sounds like a work from the director of A Dirty Shame and Female Trouble.

Unfortunately, there is no word yet as to a release date or whether or not this would be going right to streaming. In the meantime, please enjoy this PSA from Waters about how ridiculous it is that paying moviegoers should have to sit through an entire European film without the rich satisfaction of a cigarette.


PSA: John Waters Doesn’t Want You To Smoke