Oscar-nominated actor Austin Butler has been cast as Patrick Bateman in Lionsgate’s fresh interpretation of Bret Easton Ellis’s controversial novel American Psycho, Variety reports. The project will be helmed by acclaimed director Luca Guadagnino, known for Call Me By Your Name, Challengers, and most recently, Queer.
The adaptation, featuring a screenplay by Scott Z. Burns (The Laundromat), will not remake the 2000 film but rather present a new take on Ellis’s 1991 novel. As detailed in the original book’s synopsis, “Patrick Bateman moves among the young and trendy in 1980s Manhattan. Young, handsome, and well educated, Bateman earns his fortune on Wall Street by day while spending his nights in ways we cannot begin to fathom. Expressing his true self through torture and murder, Bateman prefigures an apocalyptic horror that no society could bear to confront.”
Videos by PopCulture.com
Lionsgate Motion Picture Group chair Adam Fogelson expressed enthusiasm about the project, stating via Deadline, “We are thrilled to add another elite filmmaker to our upcoming slate. Luca is a brilliant artist, and the perfect visionary to create a whole new interpretation of this potent and classic IP.”
While Jacob Elordi was considered the frontrunner for the role, Butler secured the part, adding another complex character to his growing repertoire after recent performances in Elvis and his role as the bloodthirsty Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen in Dune: Part Two. Under Guadagnino’s direction, whose genre work includes Suspiria and Bones and All, the new adaptation may explore different aspects of Ellis’s source material. The filmmaker’s track record suggests a potentially more erotic emphasis than the original horror satire, while maintaining the dark psychological elements central to the story, Variety notes.
The casting announcement comes at a peak moment in Butler’s career. In a curious coincidence, both Butler and former frontrunner Elordi have portrayed Elvis Presley on screen – Butler in Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis and Elordi in Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla. While Elordi won’t be playing Bateman, he is set to play the Monster in Guillermo del Toro’s upcoming Frankenstein.
The project will be produced by Frenesy Films, with Sam Pressman, son of Edward R. Pressman who produced the 2000 adaptation, serving as executive producer through Pressman Film. Guadagnino recently completed filming After the Hunt starring Julia Roberts and Andrew Garfield. His latest works have received significant recognition, with Daniel Craig nominated for a Golden Globe for best actor in Queer, while Challengers earned nominations for best motion picture (musical or comedy) and best music, with Zendaya vying for best actress. Further casting announcements and production details are expected to follow.
