Meet the star-studded cast of Perfection Unleashed

Galahad is the perfect human being who was raised in a laboratory for twenty five years. He becomes the catalyst of social turmoil in a world uneasily populated by humans, in vitros, clones, and mutants. His escape is especially devastating for Danyael Sabre, the alpha empath who survived a traumatic childhood and struggled to make something of his life, only to learn that his genetic code was used as Galahad’s physical template.

To play both Galahad and Danyael, we need an actor who can depict both Galahad’s wide-eyed innocence as well as Danyael’s world-weariness. Physical beauty is a prerequisite, of course. My pick for Galahad and Danyael is Orlando Bloom.

ORLANDO BLOOM

Zara Itani is a sensual Lebanese-Venezuelan assassin with very few scruples and a compassionate streak that she works very hard to conceal beneath exquisitely cultivated indifference. She’s a joy to watch in hand-to-hand combat, and you really don’t want her to pull a gun or dagger on you.

In Perfect Weapon, I wrote of Zara, “On a normal day, Zara could wreak more havoc with love than most people could with hate.” Yes, that’s her–trouble incarnate. No one else would have freed the perfect human being from his laboratory prison on little more than a whim. She is the daughter you would not wish on yourself, your best friends, and most especially not on your worst enemies.

More important than physical beauty (although Zara is beautiful) is attitude. My pick for Zara is Kate Beckinsale.

KATE BECKINSALE

Mu Xin is the clone of Fu Hao, a 1,200 BC Chinese queen, military warlord, and high priestess. Her desert tomb was unearthed by archaeologists in 1976 and Xin was cloned from the remnants of Fu Hao’s DNA. Xin is among the first of the historic clones, and is considered a national treasure. She works for the US government as an analyst in the National Security Agency, but moonlights on the side as a hacker extraordinaire. She is brilliant but low-key, and appears content to play the role of Zara’s reliable sidekick.

Still, Xin’s genes were derived from a powerful and charismatic woman who rose from the lowly role of a concubine to become a queen, military warlord, and high priestess. What lurks behind Xin’s unflappable calm, and when will the real Xin show up to claim her genetic birthright?

The one absolute requirement for Mu Xin is that she’s Chinese (for obvious reasons.) Beyond that, I wanted an actress who looks like she could have been a superwoman from ancient China. My pick for Xin is Zhang Ziyi.

ZHANG ZIYI

Miriya Templeton is an alpha telepath and an enforcer with the Mutant Affairs Council, the preeminent mutant rights organization in the US. In contrast to her petite stature, she is confident to the point of arrogance. She learns quickly that no amount of arrogance or confidence will get her through the kind of chaos Galahad’s escape unleashes upon society.

The biggest issue I have with casting an actress for Miriya is that I wrote her as a petite person. Do you know any petite, short actresses? No, me neither. No worries. I’m good at compromise. My pick for Miriya is Dakota Fanning.

DAKOTA FANNING

And finally, Lucien Winter is a wealthy philanthropist who saved Danyael, the alpha empath, from the ruins of his childhood. Danyael has since come into his own strength, but habits are hard to break. Lucien’s unshakeable friendship still anchors Danyael’s emotional stability.

For Lucien, I wanted an actor who could look like he was born not just with the the silver spoon, but with the whole place setting in his mouth. My pick for Lucien Winter is Armie Hammer.

ARMIE HAMMER