Joseph Gordon-Levitt roped in to play cult leader Jim Jones in new film

Actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt is all set to take on the chilling role of cult leader Jim Jomes in an upcoming film, titled White Night, based on an infamous case of mass suicide that Jones orchestrated, reported Variety.

Jones, the leader of the Peoples Temple, convinced over 900 people to commit mass suicide by drinking cyanide-laced punch in Guyana, South America in 1978, an event that came to be known as the Jonestown massacre.

Gordon-Levitt will be seen alongside Carrie actress Chloë Grace Moretz who has been roped in to play the role of Jones’ close confidant who lived to tell the horrific tale.

The film is set to be helmed by Norwegian filmmaker Anne Sewitsky and will reportedly be an adaptation of Deborah Layton’s memoir Seductive Poison, with William Wheeler penning the script.

Amy Nauiokas, co-producer of the film, was quoted saying, “Debbie Layton’s incredible journey with the People's Temple deserves an audience across generations. It should serve as warning about the power a certain type of charismatic leader can have and the very real lessons to be learned from our history.”

It is pertinent to mention that another film about Jones is in the making, with Leonardo DiCaprio reportedly in final talks to star.