Christina Ricci has signed to star in The Gathering, a $17m UK supernatural thriller, scheduled to start shooting on Sept 3 for Granada Film and Samuelson Productions.

Directed by Brian Gilbert, the film will also star Kerry Fox, and rising UK actors Ioan Gruffudd, Stephen Dillane and Simon Russell Beale. The screenplay is written by Anthony Horowitz.

Marc Samuelson and Peter Samuelson produce, along with Granada's Pippa Cross. Executive producers are Steve Christian, Simon Franks, Anthony Horowitz, Zygi Kamasa, Patrick McKenna and Duncan Reid.

London-based international sales agent Capitol Films has pre-sold the film, which will shoot at Elstree Studios and in the Isle Of Man, to Helkon SK for the UK and Helkon AG for Germany. Financing comes from The Isle Of Man Film Commission, Granada Film and Ingenious Media.

The Gathering will be Ricci's second outing with Granada, after she appeared in Terry Zwigoff's Ghost World, which the company co-produced with the US' mr mudd.