Lucy Hale has been tapped to star in the upcoming sci-fi thriller White Mars. 

The story is set in an abandoned Aquila Research Facility located in Antarctica. It follows microbiologist Sammie, played by Hale, as she is faced with fighting against an evil entity who wants to kill her and her crew members. 

Martin Owen is set to direct the film with a script written by Matt Mitchell, Vick Sargent, and Roo Berry. Principal photography will begin on Nov. 11 at Cinecittà Studios in Rome.

Matt Williams from Future Artists Entertainment will produce with Neil Jones, Steve Griffith, and Steve Jelley from Singularity Entertainment. XYZ Films will be co-financing collectively with IPR.VC, with Singularity, and handling worldwide sales. White Mars will mark Singularity’s feature film debut. 

Hale’s most recent work includes Hulu hit Which Brings Me To You and romantic-comedy Puppy Love. Her most notable role is Aria Montgomery in the 2010 drama Pretty Little Liars.

Lucy Hale commented on the film, saying, “White Mars is an absolute psychological thrill ride, and I’m so excited to film this at the Cinecittà film stages in Rome. At the heart of this story is Sammie, a character I truly admire for her resilience and strength. I can’t wait to collaborate with Martin Owen, our incredible cast, and the entire team to bring this story to life.”

Matt Williams followed up, saying, “I am excited for this to be the first of a multi-slate of films with the team at XYZ and Singularity. Together, we will be bringing technologically advanced movie-making to the independent market to compete visually with high-end studio films. We are thrilled that Lucy is joining us on this action-packed sci-fi adventure as her character battles the sinister forces that threaten us all.”

Hale is repped by CAA and Reel Talent Management.