Blair Underwood (Quantico) is set to direct, produce and star in his upcoming film Viral, an indie thriller about a man dealing with his wife’s disappearance. Joe McClean wrote the script and is producing alongside Daniel Cypress and York Films’ John Kalafatis, Joanna Kalafatis and Andreas Ignatiou.

As confirmed by Deadline, Viral will tell the story of Andrew, portrayed by Underwood, who goes into complete paranoia after his wife mystersially goes missing. The way that Andrew handles this trauma is by going through another self-destructive cycle through his new girlfriend Emilia, who also has her own psychological trauma to deal with. The film will delve into their relationship, and if they are strong enough to get past their own issues and mental illnesses to find true happiness together. 

When asked about the film, Underwood said, “Every once in a while, a script comes along that is a rare gem. The characters are undeniably rich, flawed and fascinating,” Underwood said. 

McClean said, “This page-turner kept me engaged from its first few lines. I’m excited and humbled to bring this murder mystery mixed with a psychological thriller wrapped in a love story, to the screen. It’s an amazing day to be a writer when Blair Underwood says he’s been studying your script and he wants to sit down and delve into all the nuances that you only ever hoped someone would notice. The characters in Viral are all of us. I’ve never met a person that doesn’t understand the feeling of being stuck in one of life’s vicious cycles. We’re all desperately searching for a way to break through”.

Due to covid, the film originally was set to shoot last year, but production will now begin this summer in New York.