EXCLUSIVE: Olivia Taylor Dudley (Touch Me) and François Arnaud (Heated Rivalry) star in Godstar, a dark comedy-drama from director Oren Shai, which has wrapped production in Los Angeles.
Co-starring Blu Hunt (The Dead Thing) and James Urbaniak (Oppenheimer), Godstar follows Ronnie Dalton (Dudley), a sharp-tongued, self-destructive New York actress, as she arrives in Los Angeles to rehearse a revival of the play that made her famous opposite Sky Blue (Arnaud), the charismatic former lover who abandoned her at the height of their careers. One savage rehearsal day strips away every performance they’ve perfected in the 15 years since.
Godstar is the second feature from Shai on the heels of The Frontier, a neo-noir that world premiered at SXSW. The project marks the screenwriting debut of Nicole Morier, a songwriter who has worked with artists like Britney Spears and Charli xcx.
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Dustin Cook and Linda Ajeti produced under the Bureau of Content and Sabertooth banners. David Guglielmo and Christopher Rodriguez-Marquette served as co-producers, with Claire Koonce and Charlene Lee, CSA overseeing casting.
Shai told us, “Godstar is a deeply personal film for many of us involved. A film about artists making their own tragedies and the heavy dues art requires. Equal parts dark comedy and waking nightmare. I’m lucky to have been able to bring Nicole’s twistedly brilliant script to life with such an incredible cast whose performances inspired me every day on set.”
Dudley is best known for starring as Alice Quinn on Syfy’s The Magicians, which ran for five seasons. Her recent film credits include Touch Me, which premiered in the Midnight section of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival, and fellow Sundance title Onyx the Fortuitous and the Talisman of Souls. She is represented by Innovative Artists and Strand Entertainment.
Arnaud is part of the cast of the Peabody Award-winning HBO Max series Heated Rivalry. His latest film credits include Twinless, Fucktoys and Someone’s Daughter, and he also recently wrapped on Hulu’s limited series Count My Lies. Set to make his Broadway debut this winter in Three Days of Rain, he is repped by Independent Artist Group, Impression Entertainment and Brecheen Feldman Breimer.
Hunt is represented by Gersh, Luber Roklin Entertainment and Jackoway Austen Tyerman; Urbaniak by Buchwald and Endorse Management Group; and Shai by Gersh.