{TB EXCLUSIVE} Melissa Benoist Circles Screen Gems Romantic Drama “The Oxford,” With Offers Out To Theo James

 EXCLUSIVE
  〉Temple Hill Entertainment is producing the project.

Screen Gems and Temple Hill Entertainment are developing the romantic drama, OXFORD, with Supergirl star Melissa Benoist currently circling the female lead and an offer out to Divergent star Theo James for the male lead. The story follows a junior year college student, Allison Gallagher, who studies abroad in England, where she falls in love with her young British professor Jamie Davenport. Their budding relationship becomes complicated, however, when she finds out that he has leukemia. The script was originally written by Friends With Benefits scribes David A. Newman and Keith Merryman, with a rewrite by Allison Burnett. Medeni Griffiths and Julia Wehlan have written the current draft. Temple Hill’s Marty Bowen and Wyck Godfrey will produce, Scott Strauss, Clint Culpepper and Eric Paquette will oversee the project for Screen Gems, and Tracey Nyberg will oversee for Temple Hill.

Known in the past for their teen horror remakes, Screen Gems will continue to branch out of that territory with Oxford. Other departures that the company has produced include Friends With Benefits, Easy A, and The Wedding Ringer. Temple Hill recently produced the hit romantic dramas The Fault In Our Stars and Dear John, both similar in tone to Oxford. Next on their slate, they’ll release the teen romance Paper Towns, starring Nat Wolff and Cara Delevingne.

With breakout roles on Fox’s Glee and the critically acclaimed drama Whiplash, Benoist recently made her way to the forefront, starring in the recently picked up CBS series Supergirl. She has been cast in the Blumhouse drama Low Riders, and will next be seen in the upcoming modern day Tom and Huck comedy Band Of Robbers.

James is known for his roles in the Divergent and Underworld series. He’s next set to reprise his roles in the upcoming sequels Allegiant: Parts 1 and 2 and Underworld: Next Generation. James is currently shooting the dark comedy War On Everyone with Alexander Skarsgard, and is set to star in the thriller Black Lung opposite Amanda Seyfried.

Benoist is repped by UTA and Anonymous Content. James is repped by WME and Markham, Froggatt and Irwin.

—TO SEE ALL THE PROJECT DETAILS CLICK HERE—

Lou Chase | Staff Writer