Emilie Bierre (Peacock's
"Teacup") and
Joelle Farrow (
"SkyMed") have joined the cast of the upcoming horror film
"Lice", which is directed by
Jonathan Bensimon in his feature debut from a script by
Anthony Musella and
Shaun Harris (
"The Hemingway Thief").
The cast also includes
Emile Hirsch (
"Into the Wild",
"Once Upon a Time in Hollywood"),
Justin Long (
"Barbarian",
"Jeepers Creepers") and
Kevin Connolly (
"Entourage",
"The Notebook").
Described as an homage to '80s cult classics and a horror mashup of
"The Breakfast Club" and
"Lord of the Flies" that blends body horror, black comedy, and biting social satire, the film follows a deadly outbreak of the titular parasite at a Long Island high school in the 1980s. When the school goes under military lockdown, the itch-crazed students turn on each other in a desperate struggle to survive.
Hirsch stars as burned-out science teacher Mr. Shanker, who finds new purpose as he investigates the bloodthirsty mites, Long plays Principal Van, a man who is out of his depth and soon out of his mind, and Connolly is the tenacious Detective Sikorski, the desperate cop on the outside racing against time to contain the outbreak before it consumes the entire town.
The film's script hails from an original concept by Connolly, who also produces with
Jeremy Alter (
"Inland Empire",
"The Up and Comer"), and
Gary Goldman (
"Entourage",
"The Up and Comer") under Connolly's ActionPark Productions banner. Highland Film Group is handling international sales with production recently wrapped in Canada.
Bierre had this to say about the project:
"I was thrilled to be asked to join this ride. What immediately drew me in was Jonathan's unique vision for the film — it’s creepy, imaginative, and completely unexpected. I'm very excited for all horror fans to discover what we've been working on."
Farrow added:
"This has been such a creatively charged and unforgettable experience. It's been an absolute joy working with Kevin Connolly — his guidance, support, and hands-on collaboration as both an actor and filmmaker have been incredibly inspiring. The energy on set has been electric, and this team is building something really special."
