Mark Ruffalo is joining Emma Stone and Willem Dafoe for Yorgos Lanthimos‘ new film Poor Things. The logline for the Searchlight Pictures film reads: “A Victorian tale of love, discovery and scientific daring. Poor Things tells the incredible story of Belle Baxter, a young woman brought back to life by an eccentric but brilliant scientist.” The film, which is based on Alasdair Gray’s novel of the same name, is being written by Tony McNamara, who also wrote Lanthimos’ last film, The Favourite.
Yorgos Lanthimos’ transition into the mainstream has been a surprisingly smooth one. After establishing his directing style with darkly comedic art-house films like Dogtooth and The Lobster, the filmmaker then made his hit 2018 historical drama The Favourite, which starred Stone, Rachel Weisz, and Olivia Colman, and earned critical acclaim upon its release. The production team behind that film is set to produce Poor Things along with Stone via her Fruit Tree banner and Lanthimos.
It’s unclear what role Ruffalo or Dafoe will play but it’s likely that Stone will star as the woman at the center of the film. Ruffalo recently starred in the HBO limited series I Know This Much is True, which earned him an Emmy and a SAG Award. The actor is also still continuing his role in the MCU as Bruce Banner in the upcoming Disney+ series, She-Hulk.