EXCLUSIVE: Jonathan Majors is set to top line topline the revenge thriller Merciless, which is based on an original screenplay by Frank Hannah. Martin Villeneuve, the younger brother of renowned filmmaker Denis Villeneuve, will direct. The younger Villeneuve is best known for his heralded sci-fi opus Mars et Avril.
The film follows a top CIA interrogator, who after the woman he loves is overtaken by a malevolent force, is forced to go even darker to defeat it. The film will mark Majors first role since his since his misdemeanor case for third degree assault and harassment this past spring. The movie will shoot in Saskatchewan in late Fall 2024.
The project was developed by producer Christopher Tuffin, who will soon announce his new global media venture heading into TIFF. The project is expected to be demonstrative of his new venture’s disruptive nature, one that, according to Tuffin, “refuses to let the court of public opinion and selective prosecution undermine great art and artists.”
Tuffin played a big part in the Sound of Freedom success last year, which became one of the big hits last summer, grossing more then $250M worldwide theatrically (and $400M in all media).
“In graduate school, I had the good fortune to study screenwriting under Blacklist scribe Millard Lampell and learned from him the dangers of letting politics undermine due process and deprive artists of their careers,” Tuffin states. “I consider it an honor and a privilege to be working with Jonathan who is such a great talent now that this matter has been adjudicated.”
Tuffin will produce alongside Kevin Townsend and Kevin DeWalt, along with Executive Producers Amanda Delaplaine, Chris Ochs, Andrew Bates, and Ben DeWalt.
“’Merciless’ intertwines themes of possession, revenge, and personal justice within a haunting narrative. It explores the psychological descent of ‘John’, played by Majors, and the supernatural forces challenging his sanity,” Villeneuve says.
Majors is repped by WME. Villeneuve is repped by Gersh Agency and The Characters Talent Agency.
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