Young-adult novel adaptations aren’t as hot as they used to be. (Just look at the dwindlingDivergentfranchise.) ButChaos Walking, based on the novel byPatrick Ness, will draw eyes for the casting alone:Daisy Ridley, who plays Rey in the newStar Warsfilms,already has the female lead, while the Marvel universe’s newly minted Spider-Man,Tom Holland, is in talks to join.
THRwas the first to report the news of Holland, who’s in negotiations to star as the young boy in the center of the story. In the books, he’s named Todd Hewitt, who’s living in a world where all women have been killed by a germ and those who remain can hear and see into each other’s thoughts through what’s called Noise, a chaotic stream of sounds and images. When he discovers an awful secret about his town, he flees with his dog, Manchee, and encounters a strange girl (Ridley) on the road.
If the faces in front of the camera weren’t enough to pique your interest, let’s move behind it.Charlie Kaufman, who penned the screenplay forEternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mindand co-directed and co-wrote the beautiful stop-motion animatedAnomalisa, worked on the script forChaos Walking, along withJamie Linden.
Doug Liman(Edge of Tomorrow) is on board to direct, and then there’s the source material to consider: Ness is also the guy who wrote the bookA Monster Callsand the screenplay for its movie adaptation starringFelicity Jones,Liam Neeson, andSigourney Weaver.
Chaos Walkingis made up of a series of books and short stories, beginning withThe Knife of Never Letting Go. So, there’s a chance to branch out into another franchise, assuming audiences are drawn to the first. By the time it hits theaters, Holland will have already appeared inSpider-Man: Homecoming, If it gets a later release in 2019, Ridley’s Rey will also have moved one step closer to becoming a full-fledged Jedi inStar Wars: Episode VIII.
