The cast for Riley Stearns (The Art of Self-Defense)’ next project, the sci-fi thriller Dual, is building up in a major fashion as Aaron Paul (Westworld) and Karen Gillan (Jumanji: The Next Level) have joined the roster, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
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The film, which is being written and directed by Stearns, will follow a terminally ill woman (Gillan) who opts for a cloning procedure to ease her loss on her friends and family, but when she makes a miraculous recovery, she tries and fails to have her clone decommissioned, leading to a court-mandated duel to the death.
In addition to Paul and Gillan, the cast will feature a major ensemble including Beulah Koale (Hawaii Five-0, Next Goal Wins), Martha Kelly (Baskets, Marriage Story) and Jesse Eisenberg (Vivarium, Resistance). This film marks the second collaboration between Eisenberg and Stearns after the acclaimed 2019 black-comedy thriller The Art of Self-Defense.
Stearns is producing the project alongside XYZ Films, which is set to handle global sales for the project, which is hoping to begin production later this summer and go up for sale at the agency-led virtual Cannes market.
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Dual will continue Paul’s recent exploration of the sci-fi genre after having starred in the Emmy-winning Black Mirror episode “USS Callister” and in the current third season of HBO’s Westworld, which is set to air its season finale on Sunday. Gillan is no stranger to the genre, having made her breakout in Doctor Who alongside Matt Smith’s Eleventh Doctor and going on to star in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Nebula, as well as the hit Jumanji sequel franchise.
