Deadline has learned that the lovely Miss Rosamund Pike (GONE GIRL, THE WORLD'S END) will star opposite Christian Bale in HOSTILES, a planned western from Bale's OUT OF THE FURNACE director Scott Cooper.
The 1892-set epic will follow "a legendary Army captain (Bale) who agrees to escort a dying Cheyenne war chief and his family back to tribal lands." Pike has been cast as a "widow who undertakes the harrowing and perilous journey after the murder of her family on the plains."
In addition to directing, Cooper is also penning the script based on a screenplay by late Oscar-wining screenwriter Donald Stewart (MISSING, THE HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER). In a statement, Cooper described his next directorial effort as "a journey of acceptance through the heart of darkness." Filming for HOSTILES will begin this summer, so there will likely be more casting announcements in the coming months.
Pike has several films in pre and post-production, including Brad Anderson's HIGH WIRE ACT (which also stars Jon Hamm) and Cédric Jimenez's World War II drama HHHH.