After winning her third Golden Globe for her performance in Joy, Jennifer Lawrence (X-Men Apocalypse) is taking on another meaty role. This time, she’s playing the lover of Cuban communist dictator Fidel Castro.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Lawrence has been tapped to play Marita Lorenz in the upcoming film Marita for Sony. Written by Eric Warren Singer (American Hustle), the film follows Lorenz who, after having an affair with Castro, joined an anti-communist group in the U.S. and was recruited by the CIA. She was sent to kill Castro but couldn’t carry out the mission.
While the film is based on a true story, the plot is very similar to Alfred Hitchcock’s Notorious in which Ingrid Bergman is recruited to go undercover as the lover of a Nazi. A remake of Hitchcock’s Strangers on a Train is currently in the works.
Sony is currently looking for a director for the espionage thriller with hopes of releasing the film in 2017. There will likely be a long list of actors looking to join the film as Castro. Sony reportedly would like to shoot the film in Cuba since President Barack Obama eased embargoes on the country. Universal is reportedly looking to shoot Furious 8 in the island nation as well.
Lawrence will be seen next in X-Men: Apocalypse as well as a yet-to-be titled project from Darren Aronofsky (Noah). We’ll have more on Marita as it develops.