The Big Picture
- Rita Ora, Joe Cole, Marshawn Lynch, and Jack O’Connell star in the upcoming thriller
He Bled Neon. - The film follows Cole’s character, Ethan, descending into Las Vegas’ seedy underworld to uncover his brother’s death.
- Directed by Drew Kirsch, the story is based on co-founder Nate Bolotin’s Vegas experiences, and will be shopped at Cannes.
Actor-musician Rita prays is set to join Joe Cole in the upcoming thriller He Bled Neon. Marshawn Lynch and Jack O’Connell have also joined the film’s cast. Deadline reports that the film will be shopped to buyers at next month’s edition of the Cannes Film Festival, and is attracting early buzz.
He Bled Neon will star Cole as Ethan, a man who travels to Las Vegas for his estranged brother’s funeral. He soon descends into the city’s seedy, neon-lit underworld to find out the truth behind his brother’s mysterious death. The film is helmed by Drew Kirsch; it will be his feature debut, after making his name as a music video director for Shakira, John Legend, Imagine Dragonsand most famously Taylor Swift. Kirsch helmed “Lover” and “You Need To Calm Down” for the Eras Tour hitmaker, earning an MTV VMA nomination for the latter.
Who Are the Stars of ‘He Bleeds Neon’?
Cole broke out as John Shelby in the period crime drama series Peaky Blindersand moved on to star in the series Gangs of London. He is next slated to star in the mystery The Actor and the horror film The Damned. British singer Ora is a mainstay on the UK charts; her most recent album, You & Iwas released last year. She was featured as Mia Grey in the Fifty Shades trilogy, and has also starred in Southpaw, Detective Pikachuand Wonderwell. She is currently a judge on The Masked Singerand will star in the Disney Channel film Descendants: The Rise of Red later this year. She is next slated to star alongside Robert De Niro and Jamie Foxx in the thriller Tin Soldier. Lynch, nicknamed “Beast Mode”, was a star running back for 12 NFL seasons with the Buffalo Bills, Seattle Seahawks, and Oakland Raiders; he won the Super Bowl with the Seahawks in 2014. He has since dabbled in acting, appearing on HBO’s Westworld and starring in last year’s black comedy Bottoms. O’Connell broke out in the British teen drama Skinsand went on to star in Godless, Unbrokenand Ferrari; this year, he will star as the late Amy Winehouse‘s husband Blake Fielder-Civil in the Winehouse biopic Back to Black. He was recently tapped to star in Ryan Coogler and Michael B. Jordan‘s as-yet-untitled period vampire film.
He Bled Neon‘s script was written by Tim Cairo and Jake Gibson (Lowlife); the film’s story comes from XYZ co-founder Nate Bolotinwho based it on his own experiences growing up in Las Vegas. It will be produced by XYZ Films and Two & Two Pictures.
He Bled Neon will be shopped at the upcoming Cannes Film Festival; no distributor or release date has yet been announced. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates.