Jake Gyllenhaal and Denis Villeneuve to reteam for crime novel adaptation The Son

Jake Gyllenhaal and director Denis Villeneuve are set to reteam for an adaptation of crime novel The Son. The movie will mark the duo's third collaboration, having previously worked together on dark dramas Enemy and Prisoners.

Written by Norwegian author Jo Nesbo, The Son tells the story of Sonny Lofthus, whose promising career of becoming a wrestler while still a teenager, descends into a downward spiral when his policeman father commits suicide. After spending 12 years in prison for crimes he didn't commit, Sonny escapes when he learns the truth of his father's death and embarks on a dangerous quest to hunt down the people responsible for his wrongful sentence.

Gyllenhaal and Riva Marker (Beasts Of No Nation) will produce under their Nine Stories Productions company. Bold's Gary Michael Walters (The Neon Demon) will executive produce alongside Niclas Salomonsson (The Snowman) and Nesbo.

"Denis is one of the most inspiring film-makers working today, and partnering with him on The Son represents everything that Jake and I strove for when we launched the company. Provocative and edgy material in collaboration with a visionary storyteller," Marker said in a statement, announcing the project on Thursday 26 May. "We were attracted to The Son because beneath its dark and violent exterior is a universal story about a man who seeks the truth."

There has been no official word as to when the film will start shooting, but in the meantime, Gyllenhaal is gearing up to start promoting his next picture, thriller Nocturnal Animals, which will see him star opposite Amy Adams, Isla Fisher and Armie Hammer. Canadian film-maker Villeneuve has most recently helmed upcoming sci-fi Story Of Your Life and is preparing to work on a currently untitled sequel to Ridley Scott's Blade Runner starring Robin Wright, Ryan Gosling and Harrison Ford.

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