Scarlett Johansson to Headline Psychological Thriller Tangerine

First earning widespread attention for her acclaimed performances in dramas like Lost in Translation and The Prestige, Scarlett Johansson has seen her career trajectory as an actress shift fairly dramatically in the last decade. Beginning with her introduction as S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Natasha “Black Widow” Romanoff in 2010’s Iron Man 2, Johansson has become arguably better known as a cinematic asskicker than she’s ever been for her dramatic work.

In addition to further turns as Widow in The Avengers and Captain America films, Johansson also starred in the hit 2014 action flick Lucy, and will next year front a stateside adaptation of Ghost in the Shell. She’s also been doing her fair share of voice work as of late, voicing Kaa in Disney’s live-action version of The Jungle Book, and lending her talents to Illumination’s soon-to-hit theaters Sing as well.

That said, it’s not going to be all epic fights and animated fun for Johansson’s immediate theatrical future, as she’s now signed on to play the lead in the upcoming psychological thriller Tangerine, according to Deadline. Based on a yet-to-be released debut novel from author Christine Mangan, Tangerine will be produced jointly by Imperative Entertainment and George Clooney and Grant Heslov’s company Smokehouse Productions. Johansson and Clooney previously worked together in the Coen Brothers comedy Hail, Caesar!, although it doesn’t appear that Clooney has any plans to step in front of the camera for Tangerine.


Scarlett Johansson as the Major in Ghost In the Shell (2017)

Tangerine’s story takes place in the tumultuous climate of 1950s Morocco, and concerns a woman named Alice Shipley (Johansson). Following the sudden death of her fiance, Shipley tried her best to leave her previous life behind, including severing ties with college roommate Lucy. Years later, a now married Alice reconnects with her former friend, only for her current significant other to suddenly disappear. With Lucy the seeming common thread between the two events, Alice quickly becomes consumed with the idea that her former roommate is responsible.

These types of character-driven mystery/thrillers have seen a notable resurgence in Hollywood in the last few years, with films like Gone Girl and Prisoners standing out as some top examples of the format. With a now proven A-list talent like Johansson on-board and an industry powerhouse like Clooney producing, there’s no reason to expect that Tangerine won’t be another entry into the genre that’s worth keeping an eye on.

Tangerine has no current release date.