Liam Neeson will star opposite Jodie Foster in the upcoming 20th Century Fox/Polygram Filmed Entertainment pic "Nell," which is being produced by Foster's Egg Pictures, sources said.
This marks Neeson's first role since starring as Oskar Schindler in Steven Spielberg's "Schindler's List."
In this project, Neeson will star as Gerome Lovell, a doctor who discovers a young woman, Nell, who has grown up wild in the forest. Foster will play Nell, a character who possesses a surreal serenity.
A second female role, that of a psychology student sent to observe Nell who becomes Lovell's love interest, hasn't been cast.
The film is based on Mark Handley's play "Idioglossia," with a screenplay by William Nicholson ("Shadowlands"). It will be directed by Michael Apted.
Sources say the film's budget will be $ 25 million-$ 30 million. It is due to go before the cameras in the next several months. It marks the first picture to be hatched by Egg Pictures.
The picture will be co-financed by Fox and Polygram.
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