CANNES — Lakeshore Entertainment is reuniting with “Crank” creators Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor for the Gerard Butler starrer “Game.”
The high-concept thriller takes place in the near future, when mind-control technology has taken society by storm. In this dystopian world, the ultimate online simulation environment is humans remote-controlling other humans in mass-scale, multiplayer online gaming.
Butler (“300”) plays Kable, the No. 1-ranked warrior in the highest-rated game, called “Slayers.” With his every move tracked by millions, Kable’s ultimate challenge is to regain his identity and bring down the system that has imprisoned him.
“Game” marks the third time Lakeshore has teamed with Neveldine and Taylor, who together wrote and directed “Crank.” The duo will write and helm “Game,” which will begin filming in January. Lakeshore’s Tom Rosenberg and Gary Lucchesi are producing alongside “Crank” producer Skip Williamson.
“Mark and Brian’s visionary story is a forewarning to us all,” Rosenberg said. “The Internet has given us global interconnectivity, yet it has also has made us more isolated, voyeuristic and predatory. We have to ask ourselves if we are losing humanity along the way.”
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Neveldine and Taylor partnered with Lakeshore on the Jason Statham topliner “Crank.” The duo also penned the Marc Schoelermann-helmed thriller “Pathology” for Lakeshore, which will begin production soon.
Lakeshore will introduce “Game” to international buyers at the Festival de Cannes along with the Penelope Cruz-Ben Kingsley starrer “The Dying Animal,” the Luke Wilson vehicle “Henry Poole Is Here” and “Pathology.”
“As the world witnessed in ‘300,’ Gerard Butler is a commanding performer,” Rosenberg added. “He is the perfect actor to play Kable, a man who represents the fight against the ruthless commercialization of our lives.”
Butler, whose credits include the eponymous character in “The Phantom of the Opera,” most recently starred as King Leonidas in the boxoffice smash “300.” He next will star opposite Hilary Swank in Warner Bros. Pictures’ romantic comedy “P.S. I Love You,” directed by Richard LaGravenese.
Butler is represented by CAA and Alan Siegel Entertainment.