Fans of Mandy Moore, she of This Is Us and "Candy" (never forget) should get to their libraries, stat. Entertainment Weekly reports that the actor just signed on for the film adaptation of the young adult novel The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken. And if that weren't enough to pump up the excitement, she'll star alongside Amandla Stenberg.
The film will be the first live-action film for director Jennifer Yuh Nelson, known for her work on the Kung Fu Panda franchise. Looks like The Darkest Minds is already set to be full of girl power, with a female director and a duo of lady leads. The Hollywood Reporter notes that Moore will play an altruistic doctor in the film, which revolves around a dystopian future in which young people have all dropped dead from a mysterious pandemic.
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Certain teens, such as Stenberg's character, Ruby Daly, develop superpowers — and get carted off to internment camps. Moore's character sets out to help the kids as part of an clandestine movement that wants to put an end to the persecution of those with special abilities. It sounds heavy, but since we've all seen Moore handle the gravitas of A Walk To Remember — not to mention her heartrending scenes in This Is Us — we know she'll handle it all with aplomb.
And lest you think that this will take Moore away from her duties as the Pearson matriarch, don't worry. NBC renewed This Is Us for two additional seasons, so we've got plenty more Moore in our futures.
Can't get enough of your favorite bubblegum-pop-songstress-turned-serious-actor? In addition to her role on This Is Us, Moore is reprising her Tangled character, Rapunzel, in Disney Channel's new animated series, Tangled: The Series, alongside co-star Zachary Levi.