Cory Michael Smith Joins Ari Aster's ‘Scapegoat'

The cast of Ari Aster's "Scapegoat" keeps growing. According to Deadline, Cory Michael Smith is the latest addition to the ensemble of Aster's latest, which is led by Scarlett Johansson and also features Jacob Elordi, Jude Law, Caleb Landry Jones, Ella Purnell and Samba Schutte.

Aster wrote the script and is directing, and A24, which put out his previous four films, is distributing. He and longtime partner Lars Knudsen are producing through Square Peg.

Smith is a smart, always left-field choice. He's mostly been a reliable supporting actor, but always an interesting one. Many know him as the Riddler from Fox's "Gotham", yet his most rewarding work has come with Todd Haynes — he's collaborated with the director three times — and he was a very funny Chevy Chase in Jason Reitman's "Saturday Night." More recently, he appeared in HBO's "Mountainhead,” as well as "The Sun Never Sets" with Dakota Fanning and Jake Johnson.

Smith will next be seen in Jeremy Saulnier's haunt-horror movie "Slayground," which A24 releases January 29, 2027. That makes two A24 titles in a row for him.

Officially, there's still no plot. As we reported last month, the rumor is that Johansson plays a surgeon whose career is put under the microscope after a popular influencer dies during a routine procedure, with the influencer's widow and brother demanding answers as public anger builds. A Reddit user who claimed to have read the script described it as a spiritual sequel to "Eddington" set in the same universe, with Illinois as the setting, 2025/2026 relevance and a bigger role for AI.

Production is set to start November 9, with Darius Khondji returning as cinematographer, which could position the film for a 2027 premiere, if Aster finishes post in time.

"Scapegoat" will be Aster's fifth feature after "Hereditary," "Midsommar," "Beau Is Afraid" and "Eddington," all with A24 — and with each casting announcement, it's looking more and more like his largest ensemble to date.