Will Smith to Lead Sci-Fi Thriller Resistor as He Continues Hollywood Comeback After Oscars Slap

Academy Award winner Will Smith continues to make his comeback following “The Slap Heard Around the World,” with the actor and Hollywood icon now set to lead a new science fiction thriller for Sony. Titled Resistor, the movie will be based on Influx, a book by bestselling author Daniel Suarez, which takes place in a world where a select few are already living in the technological future.

Smith will add to his smorgasbord of sci-fi offerings with Resistor, starring as particle physicist Jon Grady who, after discovering a device that reflects gravity, also discovers the shadowy world beneath our own that keeps all technological advancements for itself. While plot details for the movie are currently under wraps, you can check out the plot for the novel below, courtesy of Daniel Suarez’s official website.

“Are smart phones really humanity’s most significant innovation since the moon landings? Or can something else explain why the bold visions of the 20th century—fusion power, genetic enhancements, artificial intelligence, cures for common disease, extended human lifespan, and a host of other world-changing advances—have remained beyond our grasp? Why has the high-tech future that seemed imminent in the 1960’s failed to arrive?

Perhaps it did arrive…but only for a select few.

Particle physicist Jon Grady is ecstatic when his team achieves what they’ve been working toward for years: a device that can reflect gravity. Their research will revolutionize the field of physics—the crowning achievement of a career. Grady expects widespread acclaim for his entire team. The Nobel Prize. Instead, his lab is locked down by a shadowy organization whose mission is to prevent at all costs the social upheaval sudden technological advances bring. This Bureau of Technology Control uses the advanced technologies they have harvested over the decades to fulfill their mission.

They are living in our future.”

Resistor Will Aim to Build on the Success of Bad Boys: Ride or Die

Resistor has been written by Eric Warren Singer and will be produced Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal, Steve Tisch and Tony Shaw of Escape Artists. The project has been on the cards for some time, with the studio now moving ahead following Smith’s involvement and the recent box office success of the actor’s action sequel, Bad Boys: Ride or Die.

According to Deadline, Escape Artists saw Resistor as “a perfect star vehicle for Smith,” and “wanted to move fast to stay in business with the star given how well the tracking was looking for opening weekend of Bad Boys: Ride or Die.”

Related

Has Will Smith Finally Been Forgiven?

The box-office performance of Bad Boys: Ride or Die is a test of whether Will Smith’s career has moved beyond the slap that shook Hollywood.

And you can see why, as the latest Bad Boys movie has now earned a worldwide total of $218.8 million worldwide against a production budget of $100 million despite mixed reviews. Bad Boys: Ride or Die is the fourth installment in the action-comedy film series starring Will Smith and Martin Lawrence, and you can check out the official synopsis and the trailer for Bad Boys: Ride or Die below.

“This Summer, the world’s favorite Bad Boys are back with their iconic mix of edge-of-your seat action and outrageous comedy but this time with a twist: Miami’s finest are now on the run.”