A24 may have found a director for its upcoming film Breakthrough starring Dwayne Johnson, according to a new report from Deadline.

Who is in talks to direct Breakthrough?

According to Deadline’s report, Darren Aronofsky is in early conversations to direct the upcoming movie. While a deal is not closed as of yet, it would reunite Aronofsky with A24 following his successful time partnering with the company for 2022’s The Whale.

Little is known about the movie as of now, but Johnson is rumored to be playing a motivational guru that hides his manipulative ways under a mask of charm. Zeke Goodman is writing the script, with no other casting information available as of yet.

“Set in turn-of-the-millennium Southern California, the story follows an alienated young man who comes under the influence of a motivational guru, whose intoxicating charm masks his morally questionable methods of manipulation and his own concealed darkness,” a description of the movie reads.

Stacey Sher’s Shiny Penny Productions will produce Breakthrough alongside Johnson and Dany Garcia’s Seven Bucks Productions. Jacob Epstein and Justin Wolf serve as executive producers for Lighthouse Management and Media.

In 2024, Johnson played Callum “Cal” Drift in Red One alongside Chris Evans, while he also reprised his voice role as Maui in Disney’s Moana 2. Along with The Smashing Machine, he’s working on a project with Martin Scorsese that will also star Blunt and Leonardo DiCaprio. A release date for that film, which is about a Hawaiian crime boss, has not yet been set. Additionally, Johnson will soon be seen playing a live-action version of Maui in a remake of Moana that is currently dated for July 10, 2026.

(Source: Deadline)