The Guard Brothers are bringing the harrowing reality of IRA bombings to life for the big screen.
The planned IRA thriller 'Borderland' has found its main stars, with Wicklow resident Rack Reynor taking up one of the four biggest names in the film. Alongside Reynor will be John Boyega (from the recent 'Star Wars' trilogy), Felicity Jones (another star from the Disney franchise, this time the 'Rogue One' spin-off), and Jodie Turner-Smith (the fantastic 'Queen & Slim').
'Borderland' is inspired by the book by Steven S. Moysey, entitled 'The Road to Balcombe Street', which is a true-crime thriller following the Irish Republican Army in London in the winter of 1975. The book details lessons learned from the infamous hostage standoff between the London Metropolitan Police and four members of the IRA during this time period, with eye-witness and first-hand accounts on what happened that faithful time - how much of this book remains integral to the plot of the movie is unknown.
According to The Wrap, IRA thriller 'Borderland' will see: "Irish paramilitary, Michael (Reynor), witnesses the shooting of his pregnant wife at the hands of an SAS sergeant Tempest (Boyega). When Tempest is sent back to London to lead a covert counter-terrorist operation, Michael joins a ruthless active service unit (ASU) wreaking havoc in the capitol. For Michael, the mission is personal – to hunt down Tempest – and he’ll stop at nothing to avenge his wife’s death."
Let's hope Jack Reynor's Northern Irish accent is up to scratch, then. Reynor has become one of Ireland's biggest exports in recent years, having nabbed himself the lead role in 'Transformers: Age of Extinction', as well sealing himself in that rather unfortunate 'Midsommar' fate last year.
Thomas and Charles Guard, better known as The Guard Brothers ('The Uninvited'), will direct the feature, with a script they created from Northern Irish novelist and screenwriter Ronan Bennett ('Public Enemies').
'Borderland' plans to shoot on location in the UK early next year.
