David Farnor | On 14, May 2016

Aaron Taylor-Johnson is in talks to star in The Wall, Amazon’s first original film.

The actor, who has won fans and acclaim alike with his roles in Kick-Ass (pictured above) and Nowhere Boy, is in negotiations to star in the Amazon Studios production. The project marks the first original film for the online giant, after it snapped up the script from the 2014 Black List.

Doug Liman is already in place to direct the thriller, which Variety reports follows an American sharpshooter pinned down behind “a small chunk of concrete” in a standoff with an Iraqi sniper.

While Taylor-Johnson talks signing on, Amazon is also hoping to do recruit other parties to the production too: international buyers. It’s shopping both The Wall and another original project to distributors at Cannes.

The other film is Todd Haynes’ Wonderstruck, which Amazon acquired at the end of 2015. An adaptation of the book from Brian “Hugo” Selznick’s book, the movie sees the director reunite with Julianne Moore and follows the two lives of dead children set 50 years apart.

FilmNation is Amazon Studios’ chosen partner for the sales, with Deadline reporting that Amazon “wants to ensure it finds the right partners in each territory for the films as a priority above simply which distribs offer the higher MG”.

Amazon is already dominating action on the Croisette this year, with five films screening at the event (including opening night film Cafe Society) and multiple acquisitions under the online giant’s belt at the market, including Mike Leigh’s and Lynne Ramsay’s latest projects. For more on Amazon’s line-up for the event, click here.

Add to Watchlist