The End We Start From: Jodie Comer of Killing Eve to star in apocalyptic thriller

Last night, Jodie Comer of Killing Eve and The Last Duel won a BAFTA for her performance in the TV movie drama Help. Today, Deadline has broken the news that Comer has signed on to star in the apocalyptic thriller The End We Start From, an adaptation of author Megan Hunter’s 2017 debut novel. You can pick up a copy of Hunter’s novel at THIS LINK.

The End We Start From is set to be directed by Mahalia Belo (The Long Song) from a screenplay by Alice Birch, who is a writer and story editor on the HBO series Succession. Birch is also showrunner on the upcoming Dead Ringers series based on the 1988 David Cronenberg film. Described as a “feminist survival story”, The End We Start From will tell the following story:

As London is submerged below floodwaters, a woman gives birth to her first child, Z. Days later, she and her baby are forced to leave their home in search of safety. They head north through a newly dangerous country seeking refuge from place to place. The story traces fear and wonder as the baby grows, thriving and content against all the odds.

Hunter’s novel is said to be “a lyrical vision of the strangeness and beauty of new motherhood, and a tale of endurance in the face of ungovernable change.”

Anton and BBC Film are co-financing the film adaptation, with SunnyMarch’s Leah Clarke and Adam Ackland and Hera Pictures’ Liza Marshall producing alongside Sophie Hunter and Amy Jackson. Comer serves as an executive producer with Anton’s Sébastien Raybaud and Cecile Gaget and BBC Film’s Eva Yates, as well as Benedict Cumberbatch. SunnyMarch is Cumberbatch’s production company, and Anton has a minority share in it.

Producers Leah Clarke, Liza Marshall, and Adam Ackland provided the following statement:

The End We Start From is very close to our hearts. Megan’s heart-wrenching novel, and Alice’s wonderful adaptation, present a story about motherhood, separation, social and environmental upheaval, and those primal instincts in us which draw moments of joy and inspiration out of the chaos. We are incredibly excited to have Mahalia and Jodie lead this talented creative team in making what we know will be a resonant, riveting film.”

The End We Start From is scheduled to start filming in August of 2022.

How does this project sound to you? Have you read Megan Hunter’s novel? Let us know by leaving a comment below.