Two new stars have joined Jeffrey Morris' upcoming film, Persephone. Ming-Na Wen and Esai Morales will lead the film alongside Deadpool star Brianna Hildebrand. Deadline is reporting the pair have joined the upcoming sci-fi thriller that sees a group of refugees fleeing a dying Earth on a space vessel known as the Odyssey. They aim to reach a planet orbiting a nearby star called Proxima B, but when a crew is sent to fix a solar flare shield, a malfunction sees the crew crash-land on the planet, and they might not be alone on this new, hostile world.
The film marks Morris’ feature film debut, having previously written and directed two short films called Parallel Man: Infinite Pursuit and Oceanus: Act One in 2014 and 2015, respectively. He also wrote the script for Persephone and is also co-authoring a companion novel with author Kevin J. Anderson, who will also co-executive produce. “I’m tremendously honored and excited to be working with this amazing cast and crew to enact a singular vision of the future,” said Morris. “Through our collaboration, the goal is to create a sense of realism and exploration that is far beyond the typical sci-fi space adventure.”
Wen's most recent role was as the bounty hunter Fennec Shand on the Star Wars live-action series The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett as well as the animated The Bad Batch. She is set to reprise her role in the seond season of The Book of Boba Fett. She appeared in Parallel Man: Infinite Pursuit, so it only makes sence that she will once again team up with Morris for the project. previous acting credits include voicing Mulan in the 1998 animated film as well as playing Chun-Li in the 1994 live action film. Other credits Ralph Breaks the Internet, Yasuke, and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. her upcoming appearances include being in second season of HBO Max’s hit comedy series Hacks as well as the streaming service's upcoming animated series, Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai, and Tom Gustafson’s film Glitter & Doom.
Morales previous credits include the TV series Jericho, How to Get Away with Murder, Titans, and Ozark. Upcoming projects for Morales include fellow thriller from Paul Schrader called Master Gardener. He will aslo appear in the upcoming Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning- Part One as well as its sequel. Hildebrand is best known for her role as Negasonic Teenage Warhead in the first two Deadpool films, and has also appeared in films such as Playing with Fire, Tragedy Girls and First Girl I Loved. Her TV credits include Lucifer, Trinkets and The Exorcist. Her next project will be Erwann Marshall-directed The Time Capsule that is set to release later this year on June 3.
Along with writing and directing the project, Morris will also produce via his FutureDude Entertainment, alongside Anne Marie Gillen, Jorge Heredia, Jane Fleming, and Mark Ordesky. Cassian Elwes and Jere Hausfater will be executive producers, and Jasmin Espada will be serving as co-executive producer along with Anderson. Highland Film Group is handling international rights, and will launch sales for the film at the upcoming Cannes Marché du Film. “We were immediately captivated by the ambition and integrity of Jeffrey’s vision,” said Fleming and Ordesky in a joint statement. “The world building is so rigorously researched and richly imagined, it feels like stepping into a real future. And the struggle for co-existence that animates Persephone could not be more vital or timely.”
Persephone does not yet have a release date or a release window.