'The Divergent: Allegiant-Part 1':Production Of Shailene Woodley, Theo James Film Begins

Production on “The Divergent: Allegiant-Part 1” has begun in Atlanta. Lionsgate is producing the third film in the popular franchise. It is based on the Veronica Roth book “Allegiant.” It will be set after the events of “The Divergent Series: Insurgent.”

Golden Globe nominee Shailene Woodley will reprise her role of Tris and Theo James will step back into shoes of Four. Other cast members include Octavia Spencer, Naomi Watts, Ray Stevenson, Zoë Kravitz, Miles Teller, Ansel Elgort and Maggie Q. Meanwhile, Jeff Daniels, Nadia Hilker and Bill Skarsgård are reportedly set to join the cast.

The story will revolve around Tris and Four, who must escape a wall surrounding Chicago to discover the secrets that lie behind it. Robert Schewntke is set to direct from a screenplay by Adam Cooper, Bill Collage and Stephen Chbosky. Producers are Lucy Fisher, Pouya Shahbazian and Douglas Wick.

The first two “Divergent” films have proved successful at the box office, making more than $550 billion. Both films are considered the most successful book-based movies after “Twilight,” “Harry Potter” and “Maze Runner.” "The Divergent: Allegiant-Part 1" is scheduled to be released March 18, 2016. It will be followed by “The Divergent: Allegiant-Part 2” which is scheduled to be released March 24, 2017.

The decision to split “Allegiant” into two movies was announced in April 2014. “I am excited, but my very first thought, 'That’s another year of kicking ass. Another year devoted to this character.’ But that’s all right, because I am honored to be Tris, and it is exciting,” Woodley told Entertainment Weekly.

James also is thrilled to shoot the film in two parts. “I think the luxury of this one is that we have time to tell the book over two movies so I think, if anything, it’ll be the material in the book, but then added as well. There will be more stuff because we have more time to tell the story,” he told Collider.