Idris Elba may be headed on a lonely trip under the ocean, as the Luther star is in talks to lead the supernatural thriller Deeper, from screenwriter Max Landis. MGM reportedly paid seven figures to acquire the Landis script back in 2016, and Bradley Cooper and Gal Gadot were at one point attached to star before early efforts to get the film moving forward fell apart.
Everest helmer Baltasar Kormakur has now signed on to direct a revived Deeper, which is described as a thriller similar in tone to sci-fi survival stories Gravity and The Martian, but with an added supernatural element. The story concerns a disgraced astronaut who signs on for a hazardous deep-sea dive to a newly discovered trench believed to be the lowest point on Earth. But when he arrives in the murky depths, he finds himself confronted by a mysterious and sinister force.
As reported by THR, MGM is now talking with Idris Elba about taking the lead role in Deeper. Landis himself described the story as a “one-man show,” so it’s likely Elba would be spending a lot of time on-screen alone in the film (though the project at one point had Gal Gadot attached, so there’s obviously at least one substantial female role in the movie as well). David Goyer, Kevin Turen, Russell Ackerman, John Schoenfelder and Landis are credited as the project’s producers, though it’s fair to wonder how much continued involvement Landis would have given that he’s been largely absent from Hollywood since being hit with sexual harassment and assault accusations in 2017.
Elba of course is one of the busiest actors around these days. In addition to his ongoing role on the TV series Luther, Elba has also lined up a part in the Netflix comedy Turn Up Charlie, which sees him playing a struggling DJ who becomes a manny to his best friend’s daughter. Movie-wise, Elba is set to appear as the super-soldier Brixton in the Fast and Furious spinoff Hobbs & Shaw, which just dropped its first trailer. Elba is also set to appear as Macavity in Tom Hooper’s movie adaptation of the long-running musical Cats. George Miller has also lined up the actor to star alongside Tilda Swinton in his upcoming fantasy-romance Three Thousand Years of Longing. About the only role Elba doesn’t have lined up is James Bond, though his fans hold out hope he will one day get to play 007.
By the sounds of it, Deeper will afford Elba an opportunity to stretch his acting chops, as the film will feature him alone on-screen a great deal of the time. Going solo is always a tough challenge for an actor, but Elba certainly has the talent and presence to pull off such a performance. Deeper does not yet have a release date.
More: Everything You Need To Know About Hobbs & Shaw
Source: THR
