The story follows an excentric farmer who dreams of traveling to space and builds a rocket in his barn. His neighbors see him as a silly old man, the government sees him as a menace and the media loves him because he provides interesting stories.
The film will be directed by Michael Polish and filming is set to begin this month in New Mexico.
Madsen will play the wife of the farmer, and Willis will play a former NASA colleague. Dern stars as Madsen’s father.