British actor Harry Melling may always be Dudley Dursley to Harry Potter fans deep down, but he’s set to take on one of his most serious roles yet in a new queer romance film.
The actor, who’s also been in The Queen’s Gambit and The Pale Blue Eyes, will play the romantic interest of Alexander Skarsgård in a new movie called Pillion.
Harry will play the Succession actor’s submissive in a story that’s already been described as a “fun and filthy romance with heart” (per Variety).
The film will mark director Harry Lighton’s feature debut, who was nominated for a Bafta back in 2018 for his short film Wren Boys.
The screenplay, meanwhile, was developed with the BBC and is based on Adam Mars-Jones’ book Box Hill.
According to an early synopsis, Pillion follows Colin (played by Harry Melling) who is a timid wallflower before meeting Ray (Alexander Skarsgård), the leader of a motorbike club.
Ray takes Colin on as his submissive and opens his eyes to a community of kinky, queer bikers. But as he becomes more wrapped up in that world and Ray’s rules, Colin wonders if it’s the life he really wants.
Element Pictures’ Emma Norton has already described the film as the “perfect expression of [Harry Lighton’s] talent, bravery and ambition”.
Cornerstone’s Alison Thompson and Mark Gooder added that the script is “equally compelling and shocking as it is funny and entertaining – and one of the best we’ve read in years”.
Also on board is composer Oliver Coates, who worked on the music for Charlotte Wells’ acclaimed debut Aftersun starring Paul Mescal.
The film is set to begin shooting in the UK this summer before launching at Cannes Film Festival.