Deadline tells us today that Christina Hendricks (Mad Men, The Strangers: Prey at Night) is set to lead the upcoming psychological thriller from Z for Zachariah writer Nissar Modi, in what will be his feature direcotial debut.
Reckoner is based on a short story by American author Rachel Ingalls, and follows:
…an affluent woman whose carefully constructed life is disrupted by a young man connected to a tightly-held secret from her past.
Reckoner will be produced by XYZ Films (Nocebo, Piggy, Next Exit) and Two & Two Pictures (Wounds, Treat) as part of a production pact to produce films “from first and second-time genre filmmakers from underrepresented demographics.” The two companies have previously teamed up on Babak Anvari’s Under the Shadow and I Came By. Deadline tells us that the thriller is part of XYZ’s freshly launched, internationally focused ‘New Visions’ slate which also includes In Flames, an Urdu-language horror-thriller from Pakistani Canadian filmmaker Zarrar Kahn (we also can’t wait to hear more about that one soon). World sales will launch later this month at Cannes.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Mila Cottray, head of production and finance at Two & Two called Reckoner “a film which reminds us of many of our favorite psychological thrillers, like Cape Fear or Nocturnal Animals, but offers a stylized and contemporary spin on the genre that is distinctly Nissar.”
Hendricks has a good amount of genre fare in her impressive filmography, including the aforementioned The Strangers: Prey at Night from Johannes Roberts, and Nicolas Winding Refn’s trippy Hollywood horror The Neon Demon. Here’s what director Modi had to say about working with the Mad Men superstar:
“I’m delighted to be working with the immensely talented Christina Hendricks on this haunting tale of guilt, obsession and revenge…It’s a film I’ve been envisioning for many years ever since I read Rachel Ingalls’ remarkable short story, and am excited to finally bring it to life thanks to the ever-supportive teams at XYZ Films and Two and Two.”
Just how frightening this psychological thriller will lean remains to be seen, so we’re especially looking forward to a trailer/poster for this one. Keep your eyes peeled for updates on Reckoner as we get them!
