Two major names just electrified Luca Guadagnino’s next feature. Trade reports confirm Chloë Sevigny and Ayo Edebiri have boarded “After The Hunt”, the filmmaker’s follow up to “Challengers” that’s set in the high-stakes world of academia.
The project, reported by Variety and Deadline in May and June 2024, lines up alongside a starry ensemble led by Julia Roberts and Andrew Garfield, with production set under Amazon MGM Studios. The logline points to a tense moral thriller centered on a professor facing a spiraling allegation that threatens career and conscience.
Casting moves in focus : Chloë Sevigny and Ayo Edebiri join “After The Hunt”
Ayo Edebiri arrives with serious heat. The actor won an Emmy and a Golden Globe in January 2024 for “The Bear”, marking a breakout run that continues to reshape casting conversations across town. That momentum gives “After The Hunt” a jolt right where audiences feel it most : anticipation.
Chloë Sevigny adds a very different but complementary energy. An Oscar nominee for “Boys Don’t Cry” and a recent standout in FX’s “Feud : Capote vs. The Swans” in early 2024, Sevigny brings decades of indie credibility and a calm, cutting presence that plays beautifully in moral pressure cookers.
The pairing signals tone. Guadagnino leans into sensual tension and ethical gray zones. With Edebiri’s precision and Sevigny’s cool-charged restraint, the film tilts toward a character-first thriller that thrives on shifting loyalties and uncomfortable truths.
What the trades said : timeline, team and the academic thriller angle
Variety and Deadline outlined a 2024 start of production, with Amazon MGM backing. The script has been described in the trades as an academic-set thriller that tests a revered professor after a student confrontation ripples outward. The cast surrounding Roberts has included Andrew Garfield, with Edebiri and Sevigny now joining the circle.
Context matters. Guadagnino’s “Challengers” surged with moviegoers this spring and, according to Box Office Mojo, cleared 95 million dollars worldwide by mid 2024. That kind of commercial lift often accelerates the next greenlight and can accomodate bolder casting swings.
Awards gravity also plays a role. Ayo Edebiri’s 2024 awards run reshaped the zeitgeist around young leads who can carry anxiety, humor and heartbreak in the same scene. Chloë Sevigny’s single Academy Award nomination and enduring prestige footprint telegraph range that studios like to anchor when themes turn thorny.
Why this pairing matters : stakes, strategy and what to watch for next
Academic scandals live or die on credibility. Audiences look for faces that suggest competing truths without saying a word. Edebiri’s quicksilver intensity and Sevigny’s steel can hold silence as a weapon, which suits a story built on whispers, emails, and reputations at risk.
On strategy, the numbers line up. A filmmaker coming off a near 100 million dollar hit meets a newly minted Emmy winner and a decades-strong auteur favorite. For Amazon MGM Studios, that triangle promises both awards chatter and sticky, week-to-week conversation on social feeds once trailers land.
What is still missing : character specifics and release timing. The trades kept roles under wraps and dated the project only to a 2024 production window. Expect more clarity when principal photography begins and set photos start circulating, typically the moment marketing sharpens the film’s debate-ready themes.
One last data point to keep in mind. Luca Guadagnino thrives on chemistry. From “Call Me by Your Name” to “Challengers”, casting has acted as plot engine as much as story. With Chloë Sevigny and Ayo Edebiri stepping into “After The Hunt”, the engine is already humming. The question isn’t whether sparks fly. It is how close the fire gets to the ivory tower.