Ryan Coogler‘s as-yet-untitled genre film may have its villain. Jack O’Connell is in talks to star alongside Michael B. Jordan as the antagonist in the upcoming project. Deadline reports that O’Connell is circling the role for the film, which is slated to begin shooting later this month en route to a March 7, 2025 release date.

So far, details on the project have been scarce; it has been described as an “event film” and will be shot for IMAX. A report earlier this year indicated that it will be a period horror film, featuring vampires in the South of the 1930s. Jordan will reportedly play two different vampires in the film, which will deal with the Jim Crow racism of the era. It will be the latest collaboration between Coogler and Jordan; Jordan has featured in all four of Coogler‘s features, from his debut film Fruitvale Station to Creed to the two Black Panther movies. Coogler also produced the Jordan-starring two Creed sequels, the latter of which Jordan directed himself. The film will be distributed by Warner Bros, who won a highly-contested bidding process for the film earlier this year.

Who Is Jack O’Connell?

British actor O’Connell made his film debut playing a belligerent gang member in 2006’s This is England. He achieved greater fame on the British teen drama series Skins, playing troubled bad boy Cook. He made his American debut in 2014’s 300: Rise of an Empire, before landing a starring role in Angelina Jolie‘s directorial debut Unbroken, in which he played long-distance runner turned WWII POW Louis Zamperini. He subsequently starred in Money Monster, Trial By Fire, Tulip Fever, Lady Chatterley’s Lover, and the Western miniseries Godless. Last year, he played race car driver Peter Collins in Michael Mann‘s Ferrari and is next set to star as Amy Winehouse‘s husband Blake Fielder-Civil in the biopic Back to Black, which is set to be released in May.

In addition to directing the film, Coogler will write the script, and will also produce with Zinzi Coogler and Sev Ohanian. It will be executive produced by Rebecca Cho, Will Greenfield, and film composer Ludwig Göransson. Göransson is another frequent Coogler collaborator; he has scored all four of Coogler‘s features, winning a Best Original Score Oscar for his work on Black Panther.

Ryan Coogler‘s untitled period genre film will be released on March 7, 2025. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates. You can watch O’Connell in Lady Chatterley’s Lover on Netflix.

via Collider