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Nick Robinson, quickly emerging as one of the town’s rising actors and is currently shooting Jurassic World, and British newcomer Alex Roe are in negotiations to join Chloe Grace Moretz in The 5th Wave, Sony’s adaptation of the popular sci-fi YA novel by Rick Yancey.
J Blakeson (The Disappearance of Alice Creed) is directing the project, which was written by Susannah Grant.
Graham King will produce through GK Films along with Tobey Maguire and Matthew Plouffe through Material Pictures.
The novel is set on Earth, which has suffered through four waves of alien invasions and a fifth one underway. At the center of the story is a 16-year-old girl named Cassie, who is on the run trying to save her younger brother.
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Robinson will play Zombie, a boy on which Cassie has a school crush but who is now a ruthless paramilitary killer of aliens.
Roe will play Evan, a boy who may have the key to the aliens’ weakness.
The studio is eyeing an end of September start.
The novel spent 20 weeks on The New York Times best-sellers list and — according to the publisher — has 240,000 hardcover units sold as well as 55,000 e-books. It was also honored with the 2014 Red House Children’s Book Award in the U.K. The book is the first of a planned trilogy with the second, The Infinite Sea, coming Sept. 16.
Nabbing the sought-after role of Zombie continues a hot streak for Robinson, who was one of the notable stars in the coming-of-age drama Kings of Summer, released by CBS Films. It was that role that caught Steven Spielberg‘s attention and landed the actor a lead in Jurassic World, which will wrap shooting in August.
He is repped UTA, Principato Young and The Savage Agency.
Roe has so far only shot the ABC Family pilot Unstrung, with 5th Wave being his first feature role with breakout potential. He is repped by WME, Luber Roklin and Ziffren Brittenham.
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