Olivia Holt is set to star in director Adam MacDonald’s apocalyptic horror thriller This Is Not a Test, based on a Courtney Summers novel
A couple of years ago, Olivia Holt had a prominent role in the time travel slasher movie Totally Killer. She’s one of the leads in the rom-com slasher Heart Eyes, which reaches theatres this weekend. Now, Variety reports that Holt has already lined up her next genre project, as she’s set to star in a film called This Is Not a Test, which is described as “The Breakfast Club meets 28 Weeks Later.”
Adam MacDonald (Backcountry, Pyewacket, Out Come the Wolves) will be directing the apocalyptic horror thriller, which is based on a YA novel by bestselling author Courtney Summers. The story centers on Sloane and four other students who take cover in Cortege High to escape a world plagued by the infected. As danger relentlessly pounds on the doors, Sloane begins to see the world through the eyes of people who actually want to live and takes matters into her own hands.
Froy Gutierrez (The Strangers: Chapter 1) and Luke MacFarlane (Bros) are in the cast with Holt.
This Is Not a Test is expected to start filming in Ontario, Canada later this month. Cybill Lui is producing the film under her Anova Pictures banner. Blue Fox Entertainment has acquired all international rights across non-English-speaking territories and will be launching international sales at the European Film Market. BondIt Media Capital is providing the financing. Matthew Helderman and Luke Taylor serve as executive producers. Anova is producing in association with North Avenue Pictures and WorldOne Entertainment.
Lui provided the following statement: “With such a beloved YA novel as our source material by Courtney and an incredibly talented cast in Olivia, Froy and Luke, I couldn’t be more excited to begin filming with Adam, whose work I’ve been a fan of since Backcountry. It’s going to be an intense ride from beginning to end. We’re dead set on making an intense, emotional, and gripping film set in the ‘90’s — a Breakfast Club meets 28 Weeks Later — as we follow our heroine’s journey and ask ourselves, what do you hold onto when everything is gone?“
Lisa Gutberlet, president of Blue Fox Entertainment, added: “The combination of Adam’s masterful direction and the compelling, young cast brings a fresh and dynamic energy to the YA horror genre. With its gripping narrative based on bestselling author Courtney Summers’ enthralling novel, This Is Not a Test is perfectly positioned to captivate international audiences.“
And Summers had this to say: “As a longtime horror movie fan, I’ve loved Adam MacDonald’s wildly intense and sharply realized contributions to the genre, and I’m thrilled he’s sharing his talents with This Is Not a Test. From its stellar script to its exciting cast, his and Cybill’s enthusiasm for the book and their passion for filmmaking has and continues to define every part of this process. I can’t wait to see the story come to life–or should I say death?–and claim its place in the zombie canon.“
Does This Is Not a Test sound interesting to you? Share your thoughts on the next Olivia Holt horror movie by leaving a comment below.
