EXCLUSIVE: Universal Pictures and Working Title Films have set Demi Moore and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood‘s Margaret Qualley to star in The Substance, with Coralie Fargeat (Revenge) directing her script. She also is producing alongside Working Title partners Eric Fellner and Tim Bevan.
This will mark the French filmmaker’s first studio feature. She made her helming debut on Revenge, which premiered at the 2017 Toronto and played Sundance a few months later and was then released by Neon.
Specifics on The Substance are being kept under wraps, but Deadline hears it is Fargeat’s explosive feminist take on body horror. Production begins in Paris this May.
Moore most recently lent her voice to QCode’s podcast Dirty Diana, which is being adapted into an Amazon series that Moore will executive produce and star in. She next will be seen in the feature Please Baby Please, which kicked of the 2022 Rotterdam film festival.
Qualley is nominated for SAG and Critics Choice awards for her performance in the limited Netflix series Maid. She next stars in the Claire Denis-directed drama Stars at Noon, which recently wrapped in Panama, and opposite Christopher Abbott in Zachary Wigon’s indie Sanctuary.
Universal Pictures Senior Executive VP Production Development Erik Baiers will oversee for the studio, and Alexandra Loewy and Nicolas Royer will be executive producers.
Moore is repped by CAA, Untitled Entertainment and Gang Tyre; Qualley is at UTA, Management 360 and Linden Entertainment; Harris Hartman is with Sloane, Offer; and Fargeat’s reps are UTA and Valery Guibal of Film Talents.
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