Kate Beckinsale is to star in the shark survival film White.
The 52-year-old actress has boarded the cast of director Jake West's action flick alongside Katherine McNamara.
White centres on Willa Harba, a struggling actress trying to get her big break, who travels abroad for a shoot with a self-obsessed star when their private jet crashes into the Pacific Ocean.
As the only survivor, Willa is stranded on the fractured wing of the aircraft with nothing but ocean around her.
Her only lifeline is a satellite phone salvaged from the wreckage, but when Willa calls for help she is brushed off by her demanding studio boss Barbara (Beckinsale).
Her signal is instead picked up by marine biologist Sam Swatek (McNamara), who delivers chilling news – Willa has crashed into the White Shark Café, an infamous stretch of ocean where great whites gather to feed.
Casting has started for the role of Willa, with principal photography on the picture due to begin this summer in Bulgaria, England and the United States.
Beckinsale will serve as an executive producer on White, with Yariv Lerner, Dominic Burns, Crawford Anderson-Dillon and Sky Morfopoulos on board as producers.
Highland Film Group will launch worldwide sales for the film at Cannes.
Arianne Fraser, Highland Film Group's CEO, said: "White is an incredibly elevated and intense adventure for the ages, filled with tension, emotion and ferocious sharks."
The firm's COO Delphine Perrier added: "We are delighted to be working with producer Yariv Lerner who continues to be a guiding force behind some of today's most innovative action films. And with our wonderful cast led by Kate Beckinsale and Katherine McNamara, it's the perfect addition to our Cannes slate."
Meanwhile, Beckinsale recently signed up to star in the comedy-drama Turnbuckle alongside Cara Delevingne.
Other stars in the ensemble cast include Emile Hirsch, Terrence Howard, Evan Ross, Famke Janssen, Macy Gray, Sam Strike, Lily Mo Sheen, Randall J. Bacon and Tammin Sursok.
Writer-director Sean McEwen has completed production on Turnbuckle in Arkansas, with the flick being billed as a darkly comic Southern story about redemption, survival and small-town chaos.
Ross and Greg Carney are producing the picture for their newly-formed Film Mafia Entertainment banner.
Evan – the son of music legend Diana Ross who has previously appeared in The Hunger Games film franchise – told Deadline: "This is one of those rare films that feels both dangerous and elevated. The cast is electric, the tone is fresh, and we believe Turnbuckle will stand out as a prestige film with real cultural impact.
"None of this would have been possible without Christopher Crane and the Arkansas Film Commission. Arkansas, especially Hot Springs National Park, is a little paradise with its lakes, spas, restaurants, casino, and the perfect vibe for making a movie."
