Jennifer Lawrence Boards Zach Cregger’s Original Sci-Fi Film THE FLOOD

Jennifer Lawrenceis heading into some seriously strange sci-fi territory. The actress has officially signed on to star inThe Flood, an original science-fiction thriller from Zach Cregger that’s being made at Warner Bros.’ New Line Cinema.

The film is currently set to hit theaters on August 11, 2028, with Cregger writing, directing, and producing from his own original idea. Plot details remain locked away, but based on what Cregger has revealed about the project, The Flood sounds like it could be one of his caziest movies yet.

The project also brings Cregger back to New Line following Weapons. His latest film, Resident Evil, made for Sony and Constantin, has also recently crossed $200 million at the worldwide box office.

Warner Bros. Motion Picture chairs Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy shared their excitement about Lawrence taking the lead:

“Jennifer Lawrence is one of the most gifted and compelling actors working today, and we are thrilled to have her at the center of Zach’s bold and wholly original vision for The Flood.

“Following our extraordinary experience together on Weapons, we could not be more excited to reunite with Zach and the team at Vertigo, as well as Amblin to bring this ambitious film to audiences around the world.”

Cregger is just as excited to work with Lawrence and return to New Line: “Mike, Pam and the whole Warner Bros/New Line team were an absolute dream to collaborate with on Weapons, and I couldn’t be happier to dive in with them again. Jennifer is one of a kind, and I’m beyond excited to see her in this role.”

While Cregger isn’t revealing the story yet, he has talked about some of the ideas and influences surrounding The Flood. One particularly interesting point of reference is Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, though Cregger is careful not to put his film on the same level as Kubrick’s classic.

"I'm not comparing [The Flood] to 2001, because I think 2001 is a true masterpiece in every sense of the word. But there's a bizarreness to that movie that's really undeniable, and it's also a horror movie.

“I think 2001 is a really thrilling horror movie about human nature, and obviously about artificial intelligence, but it asks big questions. And I think, in that way, there's some similarity with Flood.”

That gives us at least some idea of the territory Cregger is exploring. This isn’t being described as a straight horror movie, but it will apparently contain some unsettling material while digging into larger science-fiction concepts.

Cregger also says he’s once again playing around with narrative structure, something that has become a major part of his filmmaking style after Barbarian and Weapons.

"It's another bizarre narrative structure in the way that Weapons and Barbarian are, but it's not jumping perspectives. 

“It unfolds in a very unique way that I'm really proud of. It's disturbing, but it's not a horror movie, although there are horror scenes in it. It feels intimidating to me. I'm still not really sure how to make it, but I think that's a good thing. 

“It's hard to talk about it without talking about the story. I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to make that movie. I’m in love with that story in a really unique way."

The fact that Cregger still finds the movie intimidating to make is probably one of the more intriguing things about The Flood. After Barbarian and Weapons, he’s clearly interested in finding unusual ways to tell stories, and this sounds like another project built to mess with audience expectations.

Adding Lawrence to the mix makes it even more interesting. She’s an actor who can handle intense dramatic material while also bringing an unpredictable energy to a role, which feels like a great match for whatever strange situation Cregger has cooked up.

Amblin Entertainment is producing The Flood alongside Roy Lee and Miri Yoon of Vertigo Entertainment.

For now, the actual story remains a mystery, but an original Zach Cregger sci-fi thriller involving disturbing imagery, horror elements, big questions, and Jennifer Lawrence at the center of it is already enough to get our attention.