Jessica Biel starts work on the mystery thriller The Tall Man

Jessica Biel in The A-Team
SND and Radar Films announced today that Jessica Biel’s latest project, the mystery thriller The Tall Man, has begun lensing in Canada. Described as a suspenseful thriller in the vein of M. Night Shyamalan’s early work, The Tall Man marks the English language debut of cult French filmmaker Pascal Laugier (Martyrs, Saint Ange), who wrote and is directing the project.

Produced by SND, Radar Films’ Clement Miserez (Faces in the Crowd) and Minds Eye Entertainment’s Kevin DeWalt (Faces in the Crowd), The Tall Man will shoot for eight weeks in Nelson, British Columbia, with a final wrap set for November 18th.

Set in the town of Cold Rock, the film centers on the haunting secrets that hide behind closed doors. With children gone missing over the years leaving neither a clue nor a witness, superstitious locals talk of ‘The Tall Man,’ a legendary, mysterious dark figure who takes children away never to be seen again. When a woman’s son is taken, the chase is on and with it the quest for an answer to the question: who is the Tall Man and what happens to the children?

Stephen McHattie, William B. Davis, Samantha Ferris and Jodelle Ferland, round out the cast.

Conceived as a ‘woman in jeopardy’ film, an outdoor ‘Panic Room,’ by Laugier, The Tall Man is clothed in the myths of bogeymen and monsters born of the folklore common to all cultures.

“It’s a story with a strong female character, a character you feel connected to,” said Laugier.

Laugier’s next project will be a 20th Century Fox remake of his award-winning Martyrs (Grand Prize Winner European Fantasy Films in Gold and Silver, Sitges-Catalonian International Film Festival).

Biel’s upcoming roles include Vivaldi with Ben Kingsley and Nailed opposite Jake Gyllenhaal, with David O. Russell attached to direct.