Mark Ruffalo has recently been confirmed to star opposite Emma Stone in the upcoming Frankenstein re-imagining Poor Things, the latest project from The Killing of a Sacred Deer and The Lobster director Yorgos Lanthimos.

Based on the 1992 novel by Scottish author Alasdair Gray, the synopsis is enough to intrigue even the most casual fans of Gothic literature:

Ostensibly the memoirs of late-19th-century Glasgow physician Archibald McCandless, the narrative follows the bizarre life of oversexed, volatile Bella Baxter, an emancipated woman, and a female Frankenstein.

Bella is not her real name; as Victorian Blessington, she drowned herself to escape her abusive husband, but a surgeon removed the brain from the foetus she was carrying and placed it in her skull, resuscitating her.

The revived Bella has the mental age of a child. Engaged to marry McCandless, she chloroforms him and runs off with a shady lawyer who takes her on a whirlwind adventure, hopping from Alexandria to Odessa to a Parisian brothel. As her brain matures, Bella develops a social conscience, but her rescheduled nuptials to Archie are cut short when she is recognized as Victoria by her lawful husband, Gen. Sir Aubrey Blessington.

Emma Stone will of course be playing Bella Baxter and, though unconfirmed, we think it’s safe to assume that Ruffalo will be taking on the role of Archibald McCandless, aka the Doctor Frankenstein of this particular story – though we don’t remember Victor having the hots for his lab experiment.

The news comes after Mark Ruffalo secured his first Golden Globe win last February for his lead turn in HBO’s limited series, I Know This Much Is True. Right now, he is reportedly in production for Marvel’s She-Hulk series, in which he will reprise his role as Bruce Banner/the Hulk – production for Poor Things is scheduled to begin this autumn, with rumours that Willem Dafoe and Ramy Youssef may also join the cast. Nothing is certain yet though, so stay tuned for further casting announcements.