A sci-fi thriller about the quest for eternal life is on the way, coming from Barry Jenkins and Glen Powell. More on The Natural Order here.
While it may well have its admirers, there were plenty of people out there who let out a collective sigh of disappointment when Barry Jenkins announced that he was tackling Mufasa, Disney’s big budget prequel to its own live-action remake of The Lion King. For such a feted filmmaker to surrender himself to the cogs and gears of The House of Mouse’s franchise machine seemed like a waste when he could be making beautiful cinema like Moonlight or If Beale Street Could Talk.
Jenkins himself has admitted that the process wasn’t entirely satisfying, even if he has delivered a hit for Disney with Mufasa. Still, it’s a relief to see that for his next project, he’s reverting back to original storytelling with The Natural Order, a science fiction thriller in partnership with Universal.
Deadline has revealed the project, which is reportedly based on an upcoming novel from Matt Aldrich, screenwriter of Coco and Lightyear. Per the report, Universal is said to have pre-emptively grabbed the screen rights to the unpublished manuscript last week. Little is known about the project at this point, although it is being dubbed as an ‘elevated sci-fi thriller revolving around the pursuit of eternal life.’
Read more: The not-so curious rise of Glen Powell
Jenkins and Aldrich are working on the screenplay and Glen Powell, who has reportedly been involved in the project’s development for some time, will play the lead.
Powell seems to be one of Hollywood’s most coveted leading men at the moment. In an era when movie stars under 40 are often described as being at a premium, Powell is undoubtedly bucking that trend, leading projects to commercial success left, right and centre.
Since playing a supporting role in 2022’s Top Gun: Maverick, Powell has starred in a string of commercially successful projects and will next be seen in A24’s Huntington, a ‘raucous revenge thriller’ or Edgar Wright’s The Running Man. The latter is due in November while the former doesn’t yet have a release date but could appear anywhere from the middle of this year onwards.
With such a talented director at the helm, an original story and a movie star in the lead, The Natural Order is one to keep an eye on. When we hear more, rest assured that we’ll let you know. Just in case the rest of the internet fails to keep you updated.
