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Fleabag’s Andrew Scott to lead Strangers ghost story with Normal People’s Paul Mescal

Looking's Andrew Haigh has adapted Taichi Yamada's 1987 novel.

By Alastair James

Words: Alastair James; pictures: BBC and Wiki Commons

Fleabag’s Andrew Scott and Normal People‘s Paul Mescal are set to star in an adaptation of the 1987 ghost story, Strangers by the Japanese novelist Taichi Yamada. 

The two actors will be joined by The Crown‘s Claire Foy and Billy Elliot‘s Jamie Bell in the film directed by Looking creator, Andrew Haigh, who has also adapted the novel for the screen. 

Filming is thought to have recently finished.

As per Variety, Strangers will see Scott play screenwriter, Adam who has a “chance encounter” with his “mysterious neighbour” Harry played by Mescal.

This “punctures the rhythm of his everyday life,” and “As Adam and Harry get closer, Adam is pulled back to his childhood home where he discovers that his long-dead parents (Foy and Bell) are both living and look the same age as the day they died over 30 years ago,” Variety reports. 

The announcement of the pair’s casting and the synopsis led to some people wondering, “is it gay?”

As far as confirmation of this, there isn’t much to go on. The Daily Beast reports that Harry has replaced the role of a woman named Kei from the original novel, with whom Andrew Scott’s Adam has a romance with. But even that’s not conclusive. 

Andrew Haigh is well known for bringing us the San Francisco-based gay TV show, Looking as well as Weekend, a film about two men who have a whirlwind romance over a weekend. 

The Attitude September/October issue is out now.