Dreamquil: Elizabeth Banks, John C. Reilly star in A.I. sci-fi thriller

Writers these days are starting to fear that they’re going to lose their livelihoods to script-writing A.I. programs, and in the upcoming thriller Dreamquil, Elizabeth Banks – director of Cocaine Bear and star of Call Jane – is going to be facing off with an A.I. that’s trying to take over her life! Deadline reports that John C. Reilly (Boogie Nights) has signed on to star in Dreamquil with Banks, and filming is expected to begin in the third quarter of the year.

Set to mark the feature directing debut of Alex Prager, who was nominated for the SXSW Grand Jury Prize in 2023 for her short film Run, Dreamquil will be set in the not-too-distant future and is described as being “a cautionary tale about what happens when Artificial Intelligence and automation are integrated into our daily lives“. The story takes place at a time when poor air quality has meant people mostly live their lives virtually from home and Artificial Intelligence has become more prevalent. Carol (Banks) is a dissatisfied career mother, who despite being very much in love with her husband Gary (Reilly), is struggling to find real connection within her marriage and kids, where the day to day familiarity of their home is claustrophobic. Worried she could be heading towards divorce, Carol leaps at the chance to get her life back on track by signing up for DreamQuil’s avant-garde A.I.-led mental wellness retreat. Gary, left to take care of their two sons, is thankfully delivered “Carol-Too”, an identical mechanical clone of his wife. However things take a sinister turn for Carol upon her homecoming. Refreshed and ready to dive back into family life, her robotic and more perfect substitute doesn’t leave and Carol-Too will stop at nothing until the real Carol is eliminated.

Banks is producing the film with Max Handelman and Alison Small for Brownstone Productions, alongside Vincent Landay.

I’m not familiar with Prager’s work, although Deadline notes that she has made short films with Cate Blanchett, Gary Oldman, Riley Keough, Brad Pitt, and Bryce Dallas Howard, but the concept of Dreamquil and the casting of Elizabeth Banks and John C. Reilly is enough to get me interested in this movie.

How does Dreamquil sound to you? Share your thoughts on this one by leaving a comment below.