Olivia Cooke Tapped as Female Lead in Spielberg’s ‘Ready Player One’

The search for a female lead in Steven Spielberg‘s upcoming Ready Player One appears to be over. Olivia Cooke (Me and Earl and the Dying Girl) has landed lead role in the much anticipated adaptation of Ernie Cline’s sci-fi novel, according to The Hollywood Reporter.Cooke will play Art3mis, a competitor in a a worldwide massively multiplayer online (MMO) game called Oasis, in which players compete to take over the empire of the mysterious video game magnate who created the online virtual world. She’ll serve as a love interest for the main character, Wade Watts, a teen determined to take home the prize. The Watts role has yet to be cast, although Spielberg was reportedly hoping to cast both leads at the same time.

Cooke was the titular ‘Girl’ in Me and Earl, which won the Jury Prize at Sundance this year, and is rumored to be up for a role in one of the upcoming Star Wars films.

Elle Fanning (Maleficent) and Lola Kirke (Mistress America) were rumored, along with Cooke, to be frontrunners for the much sought-after role.

The film, from Warner Bros. and Village Roadshow, marks the first time Spielberg has helmed for Warner since 2001’s A.I. Artificial Intelligence. His connection with the studio stretches back to 1985’s The Color Purple. He’s also attached as a producer along with Donald De Line, Kristie Macosko Krieger and Dan Farah. A December 15, 2017 has been announced.