Maisie Williams is fast becoming one of the busiest bees in Tinsel Town. Not only is the actress primed to reprise her defining role as Arya Stark for Game of Thrones season 6, but she’s also got a schedule crammed full of future appearances in Doctor Who, The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea and, potentially, a leading role in Kate Maberly’s adaptation, The Forest of Hands and Teeth. Now, it appears Williams is ready to keep another plate spinning by signing on for Peter Hutchings’ indie drama, Arrivals.
That’s according to The Hollywood Reporter, who revealed that the so-hot-right-now actress is set to star opposite Ender’s Game Asa Butterfield in the low-key feature. With a winter shoot in Cape Town, South Africa on the cards, the screenplay for Hutchings’ latest – penned by Fergal Rock – has been raising eyebrows for all the right reasons, having earned the title of an Academy Nicholl semifinalist in 2013. Now, it’s on the cusp of being brought to life.
With Williams and Butterfield now in place, Arrivals will see the latter up-and-comer play an atypical American college dropout, who is trying to make ends meet as a baggage handler in Cape Town. He’s also a hypochondriac, meaning that Butterfield’s down-and-out character is unlikely to get any sympathy from Williams’ terminally ill teenage girl. Though an impassioned bucket list soon draws them together.
Behind the camera, Arrivals will be shepherded into development by South African production company Kalahari Film and Media, the same one responsible for films such as Dredd and the rather excellent District 9.
As for Arrivals, Hutching’s project is simmering the nascent stages at this point, though we’ll be sure to keep you posted on its journey in front of the camera. Following news of her potential role in The Forest of Hands and Teeth, Williams’ slate is jam-packed over the next 12-to-18 months. Butterfield, on the other hand, will be next seen starring in Tim Burton’s Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, due for release in March of next year.