J.A Bayona directs Liam Neeson in the UK

The story centres on a young boy trying to come to terms with his mother’s terminal cancer who is visited by a story-telling monster in the middle of the night. The original idea was created by Siobhan Dowd, who died from cancer before she could finish writing it.

With much of the detail under wraps, we can tell you that our sources say the project will film for the most part in Manchester – open castings have recently been held across the UK for the role of the young boy.

Barcelona-born Bayona’s recent projects include directing two episodes of the gothic fantasy horror series Penny Dreadful which shot mainly in Dublin. He is also slated to direct the sequel to World War Z – the first feature, starring Brad Pitt, shot mostly in the UK in 2011.

Neeson has most recently been filming in LA and Atlanta, Georgia, as he reprises his role as ex-soldier Bryan Mills in the latest in the run of suspense thrillers.

For more on filming in the UK, go to our production guide.