Black Bag: Cate Blanchett, Michael Fassbender to star in Steven Soderbergh, David Koepp spy thriller

We have a double header of director Steven Soderbergh and screenwriter David Koepp news to report today. Not only has their ghost story Presence (read our review HERE) secured distribution through Neon, but The Hollywood Reporter has also revealed that they’re re-teaming for a spy thriller called Black Bag, which is set to star Cate Blanchett (Nightmare Alley) and Michael Fassbender (The Killer).

Soderbergh and Koepp are currently seeking financing and distribution for Black Bag, with the project having gone out to studios and streamers last week. If one of the studios and streamers decided to pick up the project, that hasn’t been reported yet. They better move quickly, because Soderbergh is hoping to get this film into production in May.

Filming is expected to take place in London, and so far the only thing that has been revealed about the film’s story is that it “is known to be set in the UK.”

Casey Silver and Greg Jacobs are producing Black Bag.

As The Hollywood Reporter pointed out, Soderbergh and Blanchett previously worked together on his 2006 noir thriller The Good German. Blanchett also had a role in the film Ocean’s 8, which is part of Soderbergh’s Ocean’s 11 franchise. Soderbergh produced Ocean’s 8, but didn’t direct that one. He and Fassbender previously worked together on his 2011 action thriller Haywire. And in addition to collaborating on Presence, Soderbergh and Koepp also worked together on the 2022 thriller Kimi.

Kimi told the following story: A tech worker with agoraphobia discovers recorded evidence of a violent crime, but is met with resistance when she tries to report it. Seeking justice, she must do the thing she fears the most: she must leave her apartment.

Here’s the synopsis for Presence: A family moves into a suburban house and becomes convinced they are not alone. A supernatural force has infiltrated the house, and taken a specific interest in the couple’s daughter.

We’ll have to wait and see what Soderbergh and Koepp have in store for us with Black Bag. We recently learned that Koepp – who wrote Jurassic Park and the sequel The Lost World: Jurassic Park back in the day – is working on a new entry in the Jurassic World franchise. Don’t expect to see Soderbergh’s name attached to that one.

What do you think of Steven Soderbergh, David Koepp, Cate Blanchett, and Michael Fassbender teaming up for Black Bag? Share your thoughts on this spy thriller project by leaving a comment below.