West Side Story actor Ansel Elgort will star in Faster Than Horses, a survival thriller directed by Emmy nominee James Erskine (Shooting for Socrates) and produced by survival expert Bear Grylls.
Inspired by a true story and based on Hampton Sides' article, Faster Than Horses follows a former Olympic runner attempting a comeback by tackling the grueling Marathon des Sables, a multi-day race across the Sahara Desert. When a severe sandstorm overtakes the course, he becomes lost in the Sahara, beginning a 10-day struggle for survival rather than victory.
Currently in pre-production, the film will be introduced to international distributors at the AFM, beginning November 5 in Las Vegas.
The script was written by Michael Mul (Astral), Chris Mul (Astral), and Erskine, with Grylls producing under The Natural Studios. He is producing alongside Emmy-winning partner Delbert Shoopman, Ben Grass, Michael Pugliese of Running Tiger Films, and Stuart Sutherland of Celtic Arabia. Executive producers include Jonathan Kier and Matt Brodlie from Upgrade.
Elgort has been widely praised for his performances in Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story and Edgar Wright’s Baby Driver. He also gained recognition for The Fault in Our Stars, a box-office hit for Fox 2000, which earned him multiple Teen Choice Awards. Recently, he starred in HBO Max’s series Tokyo Vice, which he also executive produced.
