The Hollywood Reporter has revealed that Fleabag's Phoebe Waller-Bridge and actress Killing Eve's Fiona Shaw have joined the ensemble cast of John Krasinski's latest untitled fantasy comedy at Paramount. It was previously reported by THR that the film would be called Imaginary Friends and would see Krasinski starring opposite Ryan Reynolds (Free Guy). Krasinski would be set to write and direct the film that is set to open on November 17th, 2023.
At this time, plot details are being kept close to the vest, but the story is based on an original story from Krasinski about a child’s journey to rediscover their imagination. Krasinski’s latest directorial effort, A Quiet Place 2, was finally released this year after being pushed back from its original release of March of 2020 due to the pandemic. Krasinski recently lent his voice to the Reynolds comedy Free Guy and can be seen in front of the camera as Jack Ryan in the Amazon series Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan.
Waller-Bridge exploded onto the scene with the series Fleabag, a show that was written by her and based on her one-woman show of the same name. She recently lent her writing prowess to the latest James Bond outing No Time to Die. Currently, she is filming an unannounced role on Indiana Jones 5, which is set to release in 2023.
Shaw and Waller-Bridge’s joining of this film is a reunion of sorts, as Shaw starred in Waller-Bridge's other acclaimed series, Killing Eve, and made a guest appearance in Fleabag (both performances have earned her Emmy nominations). Younger fans might recognize Shaw as Aunt Petunia in the Harry Potter film franchise. She will next be seen in the Disney+ Star Wars series Andor, a prequel series that follows Diego Luna’s Cassian Andorcharacter from Rogue One as he goes on adventures during the early years of the Rebellion.
Krasinski is set to produce the now untitled film with his Sunday Night partners Andrew Form and Allyson Seeger. Reynolds will also produce under his company banner, Maximum Effort. Reynold’s Maximum Effort also produced Deadpool, Deadpool 2, and Detective Pikachu, all films starring Reynolds. Both Krasinski and Reynolds production banners have first-look deals with Paramount.
Imaginary Friends reportedly will be released on November 17, 2023.