Tom Cruise to star in Doug Liman’s supernatural thriller ‘Deeper’

US actor Tom Cruise attends the London Air Ambulance Charity Gala Dinner at The OWO in central London, Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2024.
| Photo Credit: DANIEL LEAL

Filmmaker Doug Liman has confirmed that Tom Cruise will star in his upcoming supernatural thriller Deeper, which is currently in early development.

The announcement was made by Liman during a recent screening of the documentary Gaucho Gaucho in New York City, where he shared his enthusiasm for creating a “scary” film, a genre he has yet to explore in his career, according to Deadline.

“I have never done one,” Liman said, expressing his excitement about venturing into the horror-thriller space, adding, “And neither has Tom.”

Deeper is set to follow an astronaut who encounters a terrifying force during a deep dive into an unexplored trench in the ocean. The project, which has been in development for nearly a decade, was originally pitched to MGM in 2016 after the studio acquired a script from screenwriter Max Landis.

Several attempts to bring the film to life had previously failed, with Bradley Cooper initially attached to star and Kornel Mundruczo set to direct. Other iterations saw Idris Elba and Baltasar Kormakur involved, but none materialized.

While the project has faced numerous hurdles, sources have confirmed that Deeper is now set up at Warner Bros.

It remains unclear if this will be Liman’s next project, though the director has expressed his enthusiasm for finally bringing the film to the screen.

For Cruise, the film will mark his third or fourth collaboration with Doug Liman, following their successful partnership on Edge of Tomorrow and American Made. The two are also working together on a NASA-themed film to be shot in outer space, in collaboration with SpaceX, although details remain under wraps.

In addition to Deeper, Cruise is currently in talks for a sequel to his 1990 NASCAR drama Days of Thunder, which will be produced by Paramount Pictures.

Following the success of Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning, Cruise will soon begin filming for a new project directed by Alejandro G Inarritu, under Warner Bros and Legendary, although details on that film have also been kept under wraps.