Ben Affleckand rising starAna de Armasare in negotiations to star in New Regency’s erotic thrillerDeep Water, which will mark the first film directed byAdrian Lynesince 2002’sUnfaithful, Collider has confirmed.
The film is based on a novel byPatricia Highsmith(The Talented Mr. Ripley) that has been adapted byZack Helm(Stranger Than Fiction) andSam Levinson(Euphoria).Steve ZaillianandGarrett Baschare producing withAnthony KatagasandArnon Milchan, as well asGuymon CasadyandBen Forknerof Entertainment 360. Production is being eyed to start in November, and the project is expected to fall under New Regency’s output deal with Fox/Disney.
Affleck and de Armas are poised to play Victor and Melinda Van Allen, a couple stuck in a loveless marriage who spice things up by allowing each other to take lovers. Naturally, things get messy, and their mind games with each other take a twisted turn when people around them start turning up dead.
Lyne has been sitting on the sidelines for far too long, and he’s the perfect director for this kind of steamy material, considering that his credits include9 1/2 Weeks,Fatal Attraction,Indecent ProposalandUnfaithful, the latter of which was one of the sexiest films I’ve ever seen in an actual movie theater. Lyne has been developing the project since 2013 and it looks likeDeep Waterwill finally get made now that it has garnered interest from Affleck, who starred inGone Girl, which also exposed the dark cracks in a suburban marriage.
Affleck recently signed on to star oppositeMatt DamoninRidley Scott’s already-controversialThe Last Duel,which the Oscar-winningGood Will Huntingscribes co-wrote withNicole Holofcener. He next stars as an alcoholic basketball coach in an upcoming drama fromGavin O’Connorthat Warner Bros. will release this fall.
De Armas recently starred inBlade Runner 2049, and it was her turn in that film that caught the eye of directorAndrew Dominik, who then cast the Cuban actress asMarilyn Monroein the Netflix movieBlonde, which is expected to start production as soon as she wrapsBond 25. She next stars inRian Johnson’s murder mysteryKnives Out. CAA and Impression Entertainment represent de Armas, while Affleck is repped by WME, and Lyne is repped by ICM Partners. Deadline broke the news.
