After Extraction, Netflix Has Another Thriller In The Works With Blake Lively

Blake Lively in A Simple Favor
(Image credit: (Lionsgate))

Netflix is coming off the high of Extraction's record-breaking success. The streaming giant just boasted the biggest premiere of one of its movies yet with the Chris Hemsworth-led relentless action flick. Next up, Netflix is partnering with Blake Lively for a post-apocalyptic thriller called Dark Days at the Magna Carta.

The high-profile actress known for her roles in The Shallows and A Simple Favor has signed onto the Netflix movie as the film’s star and producer. Dark Days at the Magna Carta will follow Blake Lively in a “character-driven narrative” as she must go to extreme lengths to save her family during a catastrophic event, per Deadline.

The Netflix project will be written by up-and-comer Michael Paisley, whose only film credits include his work as a writer production assistant on the streaming platform’s hit series, The Witcher. Paisley also signed on to write a horror film for STXfilms called Dollhouse at the end of last year.

Dark Days at the Magna Carta could reportedly be a trilogy for Blake Lively if the first movie is successful. The 32-year-old actress has yet to nab her own franchise since her start on Gossip Girl and appearances in the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants films over ten years ago.

Blake Lively’s most recent action-drama The Rhythm Section was a massive flop for Paramount, as it made just under $6 million worldwide on a reported production budget of $50 million back in February. The actress went through an incredible transformation and suffered a shattered hand injury to play a woman seeking revenge for her family after they die in an orchestrated plane crash.

Dark Days at the Magna Carta is being produced by Blake Lively under her production label B for Effort with Kate Vorhoff (Hustlers, 21 Bridges, My Spy) and Shawn Levy of 21 Laps (Stranger Things, Arrival, Night At the Museum). Levy is also the director of the upcoming film Free Guy, which stars Lively’s husband Ryan Reynolds and Killing Eve’s Jodie Comer.

Aside from this coming partnership with Netflix, Blake Lively will star and produce in The Husband’s Secret, an adaptation of the 2013 Liane Moriarty novel of the same name. It’s about the interconnected lives of three women after Lively’s character discovers a secret letter her husband wrote. Moriarty also famously wrote Big Little Lies before it was adapted into the hit HBO show.

Following Extraction’s success, Netflix already has a sequel in the works. The streaming service is gearing up for the release of Damien Chazelle’s TV show The Eddy and the second season of Dead To Me this Friday, the exclusive release of new rom-com The Lovebirds and the Steve Carell-led comedy series Space Force along other titles available to stream.

Check out more of Netflix’s May offerings, and stay tuned here on CinemaBlend for more news about what’s coming to streaming.

Sarah El-Mahmoud
Staff Writer

Sarah El-Mahmoud has been with CinemaBlend since 2018 after graduating from Cal State Fullerton with a degree in Journalism. In college, she was the Managing Editor of the award-winning college paper, The Daily Titan, where she specialized in writing/editing long-form features, profiles and arts & entertainment coverage, including her first run-in with movie reporting, with a phone interview with Guillermo del Toro for Best Picture winner, The Shape of Water. Now she's into covering YA television and movies, and plenty of horror. Word webslinger. All her writing should be read in Sarah Connor’s Terminator 2 voice over.