Cast Photo and Details Revealed For Simon Kinberg and Jessica Chastain's All-Female Spy Thriller 355

Last week it was announced that Jessica Chastain, Lupita Nyong’o, Marion Cotillard, Fan Bingbing, and Penelope Cruz would be teaming up for an all-female spy thriller called 355. That movie is being directed by Simon Kinberg (X-Men: Dark Phoenix) and today we have a cast photo to share along with an interview with Chastain talking about the project. 

Each of the actresses will play agents for varied international intelligence agencies and they are all brought together in order to stop a sinister crime organization from acquiring and using a deadly weapon.

While talking to Deadline about the film and the inspiration behind it, Chastain said:

"I had so much fun working on The Help that I always wanted to do another female ensemble film and I love the Bourne movies, the Mission: Impossible films, and wondered why, except for Charlie’s Angels, there hadn’t been a true female ensemble action-thriller spy film. That got my wheels going, along with the idea of casting actresses from all over the world to truly make it an international project. I realized the incredible creative freedom we would have with that. I brought the idea to Simon, told him about the actresses I was thinking of, and he was so sweet. He said, 'I want to do it with you.'"

It's kind of funny that a film like The Help led to an action-packed spy thriller like 355. But she goes on to say that it was Zero Dark Thirty that inspired the genre that she wanted to go with along with the film's factual based title. 

"When I was preparing for Zero Dark Thirty, I had incredible resources working in the CIA I got to learn from, we have a consultant in our film that has a lot of knowledge in espionage. This title came from one of the conversations I had with him. Agent 355 was the code name of a female spy during the American Revolution. She was one of the very first spies for the United States, and her identity is still unknown. For a lot of women who work in the CIA and other organizations like that, Code 355 is a universal slang term for a female spy. It’s the invisible woman who was never named."

That's a pretty cool historical piece of information that I was never aware of! The screenplay has yet to be completed, but it's being written by Theresa Rebeck, who says that the Bourne franchise is the cornerstone of inspiration, but stressed that it's very much an ensemble picture. 

"It won’t be as hyperbolic as some franchises, and unlike the other films that revolve around one main character, the goal here is the true ensemble, all these characters who have their own distinct traits, histories — fully formed and complex characters with equal weight in the film. That’s unique, as is having all female spies. We are digging into the reality of spy craft today. There are all kinds of things that seem out of a James Bond or even a sci-fi movie, but the technology is so advanced that it’s real. Having someone who knows that reality informing the script has been really helpful."

Chastain goes on to talk about how she is excited to be working on a film with such strong actresses, who will be playing strong female characters.

"The action genre has long been dominated by male heroes, and it’s so exciting to be part of a film that will allow for not just one female action hero but a whole ensemble of very capable, fierce female characters that reject tired stereotypes. Characters that liberate from the confines of stereotypical traits. That is something that excited me about this, the opportunity to create different types of female heroes."

I really dig the concept behind this film and I hope that Kinberg and Chastain end up delivering a badass spy thriller! I love Spy films, so I'm hoping for the best.

Top secret no more. Mission Accepted! #355Movie #电影355 #CannesYouHandleUs pic.twitter.com/W2MoZK1q6v

— Lupita Nyong'o (@Lupita_Nyongo) May 10, 2018