DirectorJoseph Kosinskijust got a killer A-list trio for his upcoming Netflix movieSpiderhead. It’s been well over a year since we lasttold you aboutSpiderhead, so a quick refresher is in order. The Netflix original will be Kosinski’s first post-Top Gun: Maverickproject. The movie will be adapted fromGeorge Saunders' short story “Escape from Spiderhead” byZombielandwriting teamRhett ReeseandPaul Wernick.
On Saturday, Deadline reportedSpiderheadhad found its leading trio inChris Hemsworth,Miles Teller, andJurnee Smollett. Unfortunately, there’s no word on which roles each of the actors will be tackling, respectively. This will be Hemsworth’s second Netflix original followingExtraction, which saw the actor re-teaming with the Russo brothers for the no-holds-barred action pic. Teller’s casting means he’ll be re-teaming with Kosinski following their work together onTop Gun: Maverick. Meanwhile, it seems only right that Smollett should line up her next big project considering her current hot streak in movies and television. She’s already had a huge 2020 thanks to the one-two punch ofBirds of Preyand HBO’sLovecraft Country.
Spiderheadis a sci-fi tale set in a not-so-distant future where prisoners can shave time off their sentences by agreeing to play human guinea pig and test out new, emotion-altering drugs. Two prisoners at the center of the story participate in the testing of a drug that can create feelings of love. The short storySpiderheadis based on, “Escape from Spiderhead,” first ran inThe New Yorkerin 2010 before appearing in Saunders' bestselling anthologyThe Tenth of October.Spiderheadwill be produced by Hemsworth, Reese & Wernick,EricNewmanfor Screen Arcade through his first-look deal at Netflix,OrenKatzeffandGenevaWassermanfor The New Yorker Studios, andTommyHarperandJeremySteckler.
We’ll keep you posted onSpiderheadas it develops. For more, check out what’scoming to Netflix in October.
Allie Gemmill is the Weekend Contributing Editor for Collider. You can follow them on Twitter@_matineeidle.
