Joseph Kosinski is a director who intrigues me me because I think we've only scratched the surface of what he can do. Some would argue the exact opposite, but I think Kosinski has improved with each film, from the stylish-but-empty TRON: Legacy, to the Tom Cruise vehicle Oblivion, to the underrated firefighting drama Only the Brave. Kosinski has been hard at work on the Top Gun sequel of late, but once that's in the can he'll segue to Netflix's sci-fi movie Spiderhead, which sounds pretty interesting.

Spiderhead is based on a short story by George Saunders that is set in a not-too-distant future where convicts are offered the chance to volunteer as medical subjects in hopes of shortening their sentences. When one prisoner finds himself as the human guinea pig for a new drug capable of generating feelings of love, he begins questioning the reality of his emotions and sets out to discover the truth.

The project hails from Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, the writers of Deadpool and Zombieland who most recently wrote the Ryan Reynolds movie 6 Underground for Netflix and director Michael Bay. The duo are also producing Spiderhead along with Jeremy Steckler of Condé Nast Entertainment and Eric Newman of Screen Arcade, which has a first-look deal with Netflix.

Saunders' short story originally ran in the New Yorker and later appeared as part of his bestselling anthology book Tenth of October. The feature adaptation of Spiderhead is expected to come together quickly once Kosinski wraps post-production on Top Gun: Maverick, which will fly into theaters next summer. Cruise and Val Kilmer return alongside Miles Teller, Jennifer Connelly and Jon Hamm. I was never a huge fan of the original Top Gun, so we'll see if Kosinski can make that macho world a bit more appealing to weird guys like me.

Kosinski is represented by CAA, while WME reps Reese and Wernick. Deadline broke the news.