After losing his Lawless star Shia LaBeouf and despite attracting some interest from Charlie Hunnam earlier in the year, John Hillcoat hasn’t had much luck finding leading men to star in crime thriller Triple Nine. Things appear to be looking up, however, as he now has Chiwetel Ejiofor, Casey Affleck and Michael B. Jordan in talks.
The plot will follow a group of thieves who hatch a deadly plan to kill a young L.A. police officer in order to distract the authorities' attention from a heist their colleagues are trying to pull across town. If the deals are made, Affleck will play the officer, while Jordan will be a streetwise fellow cop who conspires with Ejiofor’s master thief to double-cross Affleck’s character. And the title, in case you’re wondering? The radio code for an officer needing emergency assistance, which we'd like to think was inspired by the British emergency number.
Hillcoat has a script from Matt Cook, and Cate Blanchett and Christoph Waltz are in line to co-star assuming the timing works out. He wants to have the cameras cranking by next year. The three leads could prove a huge boost, as they’re all getting awards heat thanks to roles in** 12 Years A Slave**, Out Of The Furnace and Fruitvale Statio****n.