Actress Rachel Weiz is set to star in the TV adaptation of David Cronenberg's 1988 thriller, Dead Ringers.

The Jewish performer will play both Elliot and Beverly Mantle, twin gynaecologist surgeons who share a lover and eventually go through a deadly, drug-induced breakdown for the six-part series.

Weisz, 53, who lives in New York with James Bond actor Daniel Craig and their family, admits she is ‘obsessed’ with the Cronenberg film. 

She brought the idea of a remake to Prime Video and is credited as a producer. In this new version of the show, her characters work as surgeons in New York and according to the show's synopsis "push medical ethics to the limit".

Weisz told Entertainment Weekly that viewers can expect a "psychosexual thriller that's twisted and darkly comedic and camp and voyeuristic. The show does intersect with some serious questions, but I hope people are entertained and moved and find the writing funny."

Screen Shot 2023-03-31 at 12.45.50

Rachel Weiz in new TV poster for Dead Ringers

In the original, British actor Jeremy Irons played the twins, but now the Mantles will be played by Weiz giving the story's portrayal of female health care should take on a sharper focus as well as featuring a lot of mythical and religious concerns.

Weiz said: "Beverly is altruistic, thoughtful, careful, and kind. She wants to change the way women give birth. 

"Elliot is very, very different. She’s not altruistic and she’s pushing the boundaries of what’s ethical."

Dead Ringers will release all six episodes on Prime Video on 21 April.