Mel Gibson, Tye Sheridan to star in Ryan King's adaptation of Shannon Burke's Black Flies

Actors Mel Gibson and Tye Sheridan are having their final negotiations to feature in Ryan King’s Black Flies, an adaptation of Shannon Burke’s novel. King serves as scriptwriter for Black Flies.

The film will be directed by Jean-Stephane Sauvaire. Sauvaire’s last project was the critically acclaimed A Prayer Before Dawn.

Mad River Pictures is backing Black Flies along with Christopher Kopp, Lucas Toh-Babak Anvari and Anthony Katagas. CAA and WME are in charge of handling the US right of the film while IMR International are scheduled to begin foreign sales in Berlin by the coming week, reports Variety.

Sheridan will also serve as producer on the film. Production for Black Flies is set to begin in the second half of 2019.

Black Flies charts the narrative of a young paramedic, Ollie Cross through his first year on his job. Rutkovsky serves as his associate through these days. An experienced medic, Rutkovsky pushes Ollie to face the harsh realities of New York’s inner-city streets.

As a result, Ollie’s outlook and thought process on life and and death undergoes a transformation after having witnessed rampant crime, homelessness and widespread drug abuse.