Mary Elizabeth Winstead set to lead The Hand That Rocks the Cradle remake

Mary Elizabeth Winstead is being eyed for a leading role in ‘The Hand That Rocks the Cradle’ remake.

The 39-year-old actress is in negotiations to star opposite Maika Monroe, 31, in the upcoming 20th Century film, which will be a new take on the 1992 thriller of the same name.

The original movie follows a woman (Rebecca De Mornay) who, after her sex-offender husband is caught in the act and takes his own life, goes on a mission of vengeance against one of his victim’s (Anabella Sciorra) and her family.

Winstead is in talks for De Mornay’s role, while Monroe will be taking on Sciorra’s part in the remake.

The picture is due to be directed by ‘Huesera: The Bone Woman’ filmmaker Michelle Garza Cervera, while ‘Homecoming’ writer Micah Bloomberg will pen the screenplay.

Winstead is best known for playing Huntress in the DC superhero blockbuster ‘Birds of Prey’ - which also starred Margot Robbie - though the movie failed to impress at the box office when it hit theatres in 2020.

As a result of its poor performance, the ‘Ahsoka’ star admitted there will likely be no sequel, even though she was contracted to reprise the role for future instalments.

She told Independent.co.uk: "I love that film, even if it’s polarising. It’s got people who love it, and people who didn’t love it so much. And it wasn’t a flop by any means, but I think it also wasn’t quite enough of a success to keep on with it.

"Which is unfortunate, because I loved playing her. But I was really thankful that I got to do something left of centre in the superhero world. We got to be a bit weird. But that also sort of explains why my movies don’t make money, because I tend to choose the weird ones."

The ‘A Gentleman in Moscow’ star - who is married to Ewan McGregor - admitted she has never had a "good sense" of knowing what will be successful.

She said: "I’ve never had a good sense of picking projects that make money. That’s just never been how my brain works."