Twice Emmy-nominated director Morenike Joela Evans has been attached to direct Switch, an upcoming body swap rom-com starring and produced by Alexis Louder.
The film centers on Imani, a Black elementary school teacher who butts heads with Ben, a White executive, only to wake up the next day in his body after a mysterious escape room adventure. The two are forced to work together to find a way to switch back while overcoming assumptions about each other, learning about life from each other’s perspective and, perhaps, falling in love along the way.
Evans and Louder previously worked together on the 2017 TV One film Deadly Dispatch. Louder, known for Copshop, Violent Night and The Changeling, also serves as writer-producer on the project.
“It’s an honor to reunite with Morenike after all these years,” Louder said. “I’m excited for what she will bring to Switch. It is a needed, heartfelt romcom. Heavy on the ‘com’ and sincere with the ‘rom.'”
The premise was originated by Bryan McClure, known for The Walking Dead and The Summer I Turned Pretty, who brought the concept to Louder and scriptwriter Alix Reeves, a multi-produced award-winning writer named to the Tracking Board’s 20 Writers to Watch list.
“I was drawn to this project because it deals with racial, cultural and relationship differences in an honest but hilarious way,” Evans said. “This is an opportunity to humanize and bring people together in a way that will leave audiences not only thinking, but feeling hopeful and happy when they finish watching.”
Evans has also signed with Shakira Hedgepeth of BoldMedia Management and Angela Nikas of Buchwald for representation. Switch is being packaged and shopped by CSP.