Elizabeth Banks' Cocaine Bear adds five to its cast

We had previously reported that actor-director Elizabeth Banks will helm a thriller film titled Cocaine Bear for Universal.

The latest is that the director has tapped in actors Keri Russell, O’Shea Jackson, Ray Liotta, Alden Ehrenreich, and Jesse Tyler Ferguson to star in the film.

Written by Jimmy Warden, Cocaine Bear is described as a character-driven thriller inspired by true events that took place in Kentucky in 1985. It was reported in 1985 by The New York Times that a 175-pound black bear consumed the contents of a duffle bag filled with more than 70 pounds of cocaine that was dropped from an airplane by a local drug smuggler, Andrew Thornton. The bear was later found dead of an apparent drug overdose.

Further plot details and the roles played by the actors are yet to be known. The production is set to begin on August 23 in Ireland.

Banks will direct the project with filmmaker duo Phil Lord and Chris Miller serving as producers. Phil Lord, Chris Miller, and Aditya Sood will produce the film for Lord Miller. Banks and Max Handelman ( under their Brownstone Productions), and Brian Duffield are also producing. Robin Fisichella will executive produce.

Russel is best known for her roles in Felicity and The Americans. She was recently seen in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, and will soon appear in the upcoming horror thriller Antlers.

Jackson, best known for Straight Outta Compton, and Just Mercy among others, is set to star in Apple TV's series Swagger. The actor will also be seen in a leading role in the upcoming Obi-Wan Kenobi series for Disney+.

Liotta, who has more than 50 film and TV credits, can be seen in the recently released Steven Soderbegh thriller No Sudden Move. He will also appear in the upcoming in The Sopranos prequel Many Saints of Newark.

Ehrenreich, best known for Solo: A Star Wars Story and Hail, Caesar!, was most recently was seen in the Peacock series Brave New World.

Ferguson is coming off from the decade-long run playing Mitchell Pritchett on Modern Family.