Max Irons nabs second male lead in Andrew Niccol’s The Host

Last Updated on July 23, 2021

On Tuesday, word came down that Jake Abel had been cast as one of the primary leads in Andrew Niccol’s THE HOST, and now it looks like he’ll be vying with another young lad for the affection of Saoirse Ronan in the alien-based thriller.

Entertainment Weekly has it that Max Irons (seen right) has won the role of Jared in THE HOST. As mentioned, he’ll play opposite Jake Abel’s Ian character, and Ronan’s Melanie. Details beyond that are pretty nil.

Not so for the plotline, which goes like this:

Our world has been invaded by an unseen enemy. Humans become hosts for these invaders, their minds taken over while their bodies remain intact and continue their lives apparently unchanged. Most of humanity has succumbed.

When Melanie (Ronan), one of the few remaining “wild” humans is captured, she is certain it is her end. Wanderer, the invading “soul” who has been given Melanie’s body, was warned about the challenges of living inside a human: the overwhelming emotions, the glut of senses, the too vivid memories. But there was one difficulty Wanderer didn’t expect: the former tenant of her body refusing to relinquish possession of her mind.

THE HOST comes from TWILIGHT author Stephenie Meyer, whose novel was adapted into script form by director Niccol. Color me cynical, but I doubt THE HOST will be as good or even as original as GATTACA, THE TRUMAN SHOW or even IN TIME (all of which Niccol conceived). What do you think?

IN TIME cutie Amanda Seyfried