Oliver Jackson-Cohen has joined the cast of The Invisible Man reboot. After back-to-back failed attempts to relaunch its classic monster movie universe, Universal is taking a different approach with its Invisible Man re-imagining. The studio has partnered with Blumhouse on the film and has Leigh Whannell (who got his start cowriting the original Saw) writing and directing what's described as a low-budget, character-driven take on the property. With production slated to get underway this month, Whannell is currently in the final stages of putting the movie's cast together.
Universal had originally recruited Johnny Depp to star in The Invisible Man reboot, back when the movie was part of the since-abandoned Dark Universe that 2017's The Mummy was meant to start. However, the actor didn't formally leave the project until Whannell was announced to direct near the beginning of this year. Several months later and it appears that the latter has finally settled on his own (very visible) leading man.
According to THR, Jackson-Cohen will play The Invisible Man in the upcoming re-imagining. Armie Hammer and Alexander Skarsgård were rumored to be Universal's top choices for the role back in March, but it seems that Jackson-Cohen's breakout turn in Netflix's The Haunting of Hill House series last year was enough to win the studio over.
While Jackson-Cohen's acting career goes back much further than Hill House, it was his performance as the recovering drug addict Luke Crain that really put his name on the map. The actor showed a real knack for playing sympathetic characters with a dark side on the show, and the skill should serve him well on his next major project. Indeed, it's been reported that Whannell's Invisible Man is a scientist who invents invisibility technology that he uses to convince those close to him - including, the ex-girlfriend (Elisabeth Moss) he abused - that he committed suicide. However, over time, Moss' character begins to suspect the truth and reaches out to a supportive, but skeptical cop and single father (Aldis Hodge) for assistance.
In a separate interview with THR in April, Moss described The Invisible Man reboot as "a really feminist story of female empowerment and a victim kind of overcoming something". Both Moss' description and the reported details line up well with Whannell's most recent work; his script for 2017's Insidious: The Last Key also focused on victims confronting their monstrous abusers, while last year's acclaimed sci-fi thriller Upgrade (which he both wrote and directed) similarly explored themes about technology being misused. Between that and his casting choices, Whannell's take on The Invisible Man continues to sound very promising so far.
Source: THR
