Rumor Killer: Emma Stone Not Cast in Edgar Wright Thriller The Chain

According to The Direct, Oscar winner Emma Stone has reportedly signed on for the leading role in Edgar Wright’s forthcoming film adaptation of The Chain, based on Adrian McKinty’s thriller novel of the same name. Stone will portray the role of Rachel, a mother who’s forced by her daughter’s kidnapper to abduct another child.

The Chain will be directed by Edgar Wright (Last Night in Soho) from a screenplay written by Jane Goldman (X-men: First Class). The project was first announced in 2020, which saw Universal Pictures acquire the rights to the adaptation through a seven-figure deal.

“It’s something parents do every morning: Rachel Klein drops her daughter at the bus stop and heads into her day,” the book synopsis reads. “But a cell phone call from an unknown number changes everything: it’s a woman on the line, informing her that she has Kylie bound and gagged in her back seat, and the only way Rachel will see her again is to follow her instructions exactly: pay a ransom, and find another child to abduct. This is no ordinary kidnapping: the caller is a mother herself, whose son has been taken, and if Rachel doesn’t do as she’s told, the boy will die.”

The film will be produced by Working Title’s Eric Fellner and Tim Bevan alongside Wright and producing partner Nira Park through their Complete Fiction, and The Story Factory’s Shane Salerno.

Besides The Chain, Stone will also next be seen in two upcoming all-star films from The Favourite director Yorgos Lanthimos including Poor Things and And. She’s also expected to star in a comedy series titled The Curse, which hails from Benny Safdie and Nathan Fielder.