EXCLUSIVE: Ryan Phillippe (The Locksmith) has signed on for a key role opposite Bella Thorne in Mitzi Peirone’s thriller Saint Clare, based on Don Roff’s hit novel Clare at 16. Rebecca De Mornay (Lucifer), Frank Whaley (Pulp Fiction), Bart Johnson (High School Musical) and Dylan Flashner (The Card Counter) will co-star in the film, which Screen Media has slated for release in North American theaters in 2023.
Saint Clare follows Clare Bleecker (Thorne), a quiet catholic college student with a divine vocation for killing. Phillippe will play the role of Timmons, a police officer investigating the latest murder in the small town, with Clare as his prime suspect. Whaley will portray Mailman Bob, a ghost from Clare’s past, with Johnson pulling double duty as twin brothers Joe and Randall, and Flashner set for the supporting role of Wade.
Peirone scripted the indie with American Psycho‘s Guinevere Turner. David Chackler, Arielle Elwes and Joel Michaely are its producers. Exec producers are Cassian Elwes, Seth Needle, Mark Damon, Tamara Birkemoe, Veronica Radaelli, Thorne, Tom Culliver, Nadia Redler, Dave Sereny and Jere Hausfater. Foresight Unlimited is handling foreign sales.
“We are delighted to have Ryan join the team on Saint Clare,” said the film’s producers in a joint statement. “His performance opposite Bella Thorne as Detective Timmons is both dark and magnetic on screen.”
An award-winning actor known for films from Crash to Gosford Park and Cruel Intentions, Phillippe will also soon be seen in Nicolas Harvard’s The Locksmith, with Kate Bosworth and Kaylee Bryant, and Mukunda Michael Dewil’s Collide, with Drea De Mateo and Kat Graham.
De Mornay has been seen in such films as Wedding Crashers, Lords of Dogtown, Identity, Backdraft and Risky Business, among many others. Notable TV credits include Lucifer, Jessica Jones and The Practice.
Over the course of five decades, Whaley has been a standout in films including Pulp Fiction, The Doors, Swimming with Sharks and Field of Dreams, as well as series including Ray Donovan, Marvel’s Luke Cage and Power Book II: Ghost.
Johnson just wrapped an arc on Ryan Murphy’s 9-1-1: Lone Star on Fox and led the dramedy Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters for Sony. The actor is otherwise best known for his role as Coach Bolton in Disney’s High School Musical franchise.
Flashner recently shot a role opposite Phillippe in the thriller Collide, and will also soon be seen in the thriller Bandit with Mel Gibson, the indie romance Mort in Sherman Oaks, the action-comedy High Heat and the drama Deltopia. Other acting projects include Vanquish, The Comeback Trail, Farewell Amor, Hot Seat and The Card Counter.
Phillippe is represented by Gersh and Mgmt Entertainment; De Mornay by Innovative Artists and Joanne Horowitz Management; Whaley by A3 Artists Agency and Karen Forman Management; Johnson by by Insurge-Ent; and Flashner by AKA Talent Agency.
