Olivia Taylor Dudley & François Arnaud To Topline Dark Dramedy ‘Godstar’ From Oren Shai
Actors Olivia Taylor Dudley and François Arnaud have wrapped production on "Godstar," a dark comedy-drama directed by Oren Shai, filmed in Los Angeles. The project marks the screenwriting debut of Nicole Morier, a songwriter previously associated with acts including Britney Spears and Charli XCX, and follows Shai's earlier feature "The Frontier," which premiered at SXSW.
The film stars Dudley as Ronnie Dalton, a self-destructive New York actress who travels to Los Angeles to rehearse a revival of the play that made her famous, opposite Arnaud's character Sky Blue, a former lover who left her at their career peak. Blu Hunt and James Urbaniak round out the cast, with Dustin Cook and Linda Ajeti producing under the Bureau of Content and Sabertooth banners. Shai described the film as "a deeply personal" mix of dark comedy and nightmare, exploring the toll art demands of those who create it.
- Dudley and Arnaud star in new dark dramedy "Godstar," now wrapped
- Directed by Oren Shai; scripted by songwriter Nicole Morier's screenwriting debut
- Story follows former lovers reuniting for a fraught play revival
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Godstar comes from a Hollywood industry that regularly greenlights small, character-driven films built around known screen actors rather than big blockbuster names. Olivia Taylor Dudley and François Arnaud, both established television and film performers, take the lead roles, while Oren Shai, whose previous film The Frontier debuted at the SXSW festival, directs from a script by first-time screenwriter Nicole Morier, better known for her songwriting work with pop artists.
The story centres on two former lovers and stage collaborators reuniting years after a painful split, with the film mixing comedy and darker, dreamlike elements to examine the personal cost of pursuing creative work. It is an independent production, backed by the companies Bureau of Content and Sabertooth, rather than a major studio release.
Announcements like this typically mark an early stage in a film's life, coming as production wraps rather than as it reaches cinemas or streaming services, so a release date and distributor would usually follow later.