Martin Scorsese has set his next directing project — and he’s bringing Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence along for the ride. The Oscar-winning trio is circling a January production start on What Happens at Night, an adaptation of Peter Cameron’s 2020 ghost story novel. Apple Original Films is in negotiations to co-finance and produce the project alongside Studiocanal, which developed the screenplay.

Patrick Marber (Closer) adapted the novel, which follows an American couple who travel to a remote, snowbound European town to adopt a baby. Once checked into a vast, nearly deserted hotel, they encounter a bizarre cast of characters — from a mysterious chanteuse to a sinister businessman and a faith healer with unsettling charisma. As the couple struggles to bring home their child, the world around them grows increasingly uncanny, forcing them to confront truths about themselves and their marriage.

Scorsese had originally been attached only as a producer when Studiocanal acquired the rights in 2023, but momentum shifted after DiCaprio stepped away from other projects — including Damien Chazelle’s long-gestating Evel Knievel biopic — and Lawrence emerged as a co-lead. The pairing marks another heavyweight collaboration for Scorsese and DiCaprio, who last worked together on Killers of the Flower Moon, also backed by Apple.

The filmmaker is no stranger to psychological sleight-of-hand thrillers, having previously teamed with DiCaprio on Shutter Island. For Lawrence, What Happens at Night comes on the heels of her Cannes breakout Die, My Love, opposite Robert Pattinson and directed by Lynne Ramsay, with Scorsese producing.

Apple has clear incentive to stay in business with both Scorsese and DiCaprio, given their ongoing first-look deals with Sikelia Productions and Appian Way. If the deal closes, the project would represent the latest prestige package for the streamer, which has aggressively positioned itself in the awards space while building a slate of auteur-driven projects.

Casting is expected to ramp up quickly for the film’s ensemble of eccentric supporting characters. Distribution details are still being finalized.