EXCLUSIVE: British actress Janet Montgomery, known for her starring roles in U.S. series New Amsterdam and Salem, and roles in movies including Darren Aronofsky’s Oscar winner Black Swan, is set to star in sci-fi body horror Symbiosis.
UK indie 1185, which recently produced Sitges and FrightFest horror All You Need Is Death, will be talking to buyers about the project at this week’s European Film Market in Berlin ahead of an April start for the movie.
Directed by Mark Heller (The Passage), screenplay is written by Stephen James Thompson, who joined the 1185 Films stable in 2023 as its development consultant to head up the film and TV slate. Co-producing is 1185 Films founder Nick Franco (All You Need is Death), with founder of New Page Entertainment and former CEO of BlackBox Multimedia, Giuliano Papadia (The Serial Killer’s Wife). Gareth Jones (Boiling Point) is also on board as executive producer.
Set in a remote research station in Scotland, in Symbiosis a husband-and-wife team are working over Christmas as the only two people who can save humanity from an alien parasite — tiny tapeworm creatures which have invaded the bodies of the human race. Isolated and suffocating under the weight of their circumstances, the fault lines of the married couple’s relationship are exposed. Additional casting is being finalised.
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Janet Montgomery commented: “When I read Symbiosis, I knew I had to be part of this unique story. The intimate exploration of a relationship on the brink set in a dystopian world makes the role of Yulia such a fascinating and complex human story. I can’t wait to get my teeth stuck into her.”
Director Mark Heller added: “Symbiosis is a psychological horror film that blends an intensely human story with an unsettling sci-fi premise. At its core, it explores the fragility of survival, both in our relationships and as a species, and how, ultimately, the true question of symbiosis may not just lie with otherworldly entities, but in our own ability to coexist.
“Using cutting edge techniques, I intend to create a feeling of intense claustrophobia in a stripped back setting where performance, atmosphere and tension will take centre stage. Symbiosis will combine the starkness of a classic and visceral body horror with the intimacy and raw emotion of chamber drama. As a story of isolation, emotional truth, fear and hope, this is a film that dares to ask difficult questions. From our fear of the unknown to the deeply unsettling possibility that what we consider to be parasitic may, in fact, be something far more complex and necessary to our survival.”
Montgomery is represented by CAA, Untitled Entertainment and Hamilton Hodell.
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