Nicholas Hoult Is J.D. Salinger In Rebel In The Rye Trailer

Nicholas Hoult is taking on a literary legend for his next role. IFC Films recently released the first trailer for Rebel in the Rye, in which Hoult will play The Catcher in the Rye author J.D. Salinger throughout his life, including his time writing the famous novel, his time fighting in World War II, and his relationship with socialite Oona O'Neill (Zoey Deutch).

The trailer begins with Salinger after his time in World War II, where he is suffering through PTSD during his recovery. It then flashes back to his time in college and quickly moves through other parts of his life before he joined the army, as Salinger narrates, "Through my fascinatingly dull life, I've always found fiction more truthful than reality." 

The overly-confident young Salinger seems unclear about what to do with his life, but as his mentor (Kevin Spacey) makes clear, his only job as a writer is to keep writing stories. "I don't know if I'm cut out for this," Salinger says. "Maybe you're not," Spacey's Whit Burnett replies.

Salinger clearly needs some refinement in his writing, as he is told that trying to be clever on every page is making him seem disingenuine. Salinger says he just wants his writing to be truthful, and it appears that his time in the army will help him to achieve this, as he comes back a very changed man. "War hero doesn't always get a parade," he says. "Sometimes he blows his head off."

Salinger appears to be drifting upon his return home, but his purpose comes when Burnett tells him to turn his character of Holden Caulfield into a novel. "The pages of this book were with me when I stormed the beaches of Normandy," Salinger says. "I don't think I'd be alive if it wasn't for this book."

Victor Garber, Hope Davis, Lucy Boynton, and Sarah Paulson also star in Rebel in the Rye, which is written and directed by Empire creator Danny Strong. The movie is set to open on Sept. 15; while we wait, see some of the other films that will blow you away this summer.