Amy Adams Circles Alien Thriller ‘Story of Your Life’ from ‘Prisoners’ Director

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Five-time Oscar-nominee Amy Adams starring in your movie is a good sign that it’ll be something of value, as evidenced by her having teamed alongside such acclaimed filmmakers as P.T. Anderson (The Master), David O. Russell (American Hustle) and Spike Jonze (Her), among others, to produce respectable fare and/or creative original content. It looks as though the next respected auteur-type to work with Adams shall be Canadian writer/director Denis Villeneuve (Prisoners), according to a new report.

The Villeneuve project in question is Story of Your Life, a film adaptation of sci-fi author Ted Chiang’s award-winning 1998 short story. Chiang’s source material takes place in an alternate present where extraterrestrials have arrived on Earth, when expert linguist Dr. Louise Banks (Adam’s would-be role) is recruited by the military to determine if these alien visitors come in peace… or are a threat to our world.

Deadline is reporting that Adams is only in “early talks” to star in Story of Your Life right now, though the opportunity to have the A-lister headlining should encourage financiers FilmNation Entertainment and Lava Bear Films to assist in hammering out a deal. The only pressing item on Adams’ to-do list is reprising as Lois Lane in Zack Snyder’s Batman vs. Superman, so if she signs on then the sci-fi drama/thriller ought to be able to keep moving forward at a steady rate, with filmmaker Shawn Levy (Night at the Museum, Real Steel) producing alongside his 21 Laps’ partner Dan Levine.

Jake Gyllenhaal in ‘Enemy’

Chiang’s original short story is the kind of genre work that’s heavy on the philosophical subject matter (with a socially-conscious subtext). The high sci-fi elements make Story of Your Life a bit of a departure for Villeneuve, but it still feels like a project that lies in the wheelhouse of the filmmaker whose body of work includes very politically-aware dramas like Incendies and Prisoners, as well as such high-concept movies as the recent doppelgänger thriller Enemy.

Story of Your Life was scripted by Eric Heisserer, who first made his mark with B-movie horror fare like Final Destination 5 and the Nightmare on Elm Street remake. However, since then Heisserer’s gotten better at his craft, starting with his script for The Thing (2011) – a surprisingly okay prequel to John Carpenter’s film – and last year with his directing debut Hours, an effective (read: thoughtful) minimalistic B-movie starring the late Paul Walker as a father struggling to keep his infant daughter alive during Hurricane Katrina.

With a screenwriter who continues to improve, a solid director, and Adams on headlining duties, Story of Your Life has the makings of an excellent though-provoking addition to the sci-fi genre. We’ll keep an eye on its development, for sure.