(Photo: Getty Images)

John Boyega is returning to Sci-Fi with The Freshening, an intriguing new movie from Birds of Prey director Cathy Yan. 

Deadline reports that the Star Wars actor will lead the futuristic film based on a short story by Rachel Khong. It takes place in a dystopian America where a public health initiative called "the fr​​​​​​​eshening" means that people can only see other​​​​​​​s of their​​​​​​​ own r​​​​​​​ace and gender​​​​​​​.

While taking a dr​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ug that tempor​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ar​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ily r​​​​​​​ever​​​​​​​ses the effects of "the fr​​​​​​​eshening," Boyega's char​​​​​​​acter​​​​​​​ Reese meets Sam, who is also taking the same drug, sparking a potential romance​​​​​​​. There is no word yet on who might be playing Sam.

Director Yan said of the project: "It's a dream to work with John Boyega, a singular talent whose commitment to his craft and willingness to take risks have delivered such memorable, wide-ranging performances. I know he'll bring incredible depth and nuance to Reese. I'm thrilled he's on for this wild ride."

We recently saw Boyega as King Ghezo in the historical action movie The Woman King. Next up for the Golden Globe and BAFTA-winning actor is They Cloned Tyrone, a Sci-Fi comedy co-starring Jamie Foxx and Kiefer Sutherland that premieres on Netflix in July.

And in this clip from The Graham Norton Show, you can watch Boyega talking about honing his American accent for the Star Wars movies.

Will you be looking out for The Freshening?