Liam Hemsworth Headlines Paul Schrader's Star-Studded Erotic Thriller
Paul Schrader locks in a star-packed erotic thriller as Liam Hemsworth headlines Non Compos Mentis, joined by Academy Award winner Dianne Wiest and Caleb Landry Jones.
Paul Schrader is back in the erotic thriller lane, and he just loaded it with a cast that makes you do a double take: Liam Hemsworth up front, with Dianne Wiest, Caleb Landry Jones, and Sarah Pidgeon circling. The movie is called 'Non Compos Mentis' — Latin for 'not of sound mind' — which is a tidy hint at where this is headed.
What the film is about
At the center: two well-off brothers watching their mother slip into dementia. One is a polished New York defense attorney; the other is a hard-edged corporate heir. Things start to splinter when the attorney dives into a heated affair with a younger woman, and that affair morphs into a volatile love triangle. From there, it spirals into obsession, betrayal, and an all-out fight over the family fortune. Classic combustible Schrader ingredients, stirred with a very specific, very messy spoon.
The team and where this is going down
- Liam Hemsworth leads the cast, alongside Dianne Wiest, Caleb Landry Jones, and Sarah Pidgeon.
- Paul Schrader writes and directs, returning to a genre he knows better than most.
- Production is slated to start this spring in New York.
- Schrader has been developing the project since 2024.
- David Gonzales, a longtime collaborator of Schrader's, is producing.
- Nadine de Barros is on board as executive producer for Fortitude Films.
"[My films] are often about men testing the limits of their own control," Schrader said. "Here, control becomes an illusion, and the consequences are intimate, erotic, and finally destructive."
Producer David Gonzales added: "Paul is returning to the erotic thriller to examine how desire can destabilize power within a family. With this exceptional cast, we're building a film that is both intimate and explosive."
Hemsworth stepping into this particular pressure cooker is an intriguing move, and pairing him with Wiest and Landry Jones is the kind of casting swing that could pay off in a big way. Cameras roll in New York this spring; expect heat, sharp elbows, and zero safety nets.