Variety reports that Emmy winner Jodie Comer (Killing Eve) is in talks to star opposite Matt Damon and Ben Affleck in Ridley Scott’s The Last Duel.
Based on the book The Last Duel: A True Story of Trial by Combat in Medieval France by Eric Jager, the novel takes place in 1386 and tells the story a Norman knight who returns from war to find his wife accusing his old friend of raping her. The story sees the French court decide the fate of the accusation with trial by combat between the pair. Comer would take on the role of the wife with Damon and Affleck filling the two lead male roles. Damon and Affleck also co-wrote the script with Nicole Holofcener, the first collaboration between the pair since the Academy Award winning Good Will Hunting.
One wrinkle in the film’s development is that the script was originally acquired by Fox, now owned by Disney. It hasn’t yet been officially greenlit by the studio, and given the subject matter it remains to be seen if Disney will follow-through with the feature film and release it under their 20th Century Fox banner or if they will pass on the project altogether. It was previously reported that other studios are eager to snatch it up should that arise.
The Last Duel would mark the second collaboration between Damon and Scott, who previously worked on The Martian together. Scott and Kevin Walsh will produce alongside Damon and Affleck.
(Photo credit: Getty Images)
