Hailee Steinfeld to Lead BARELY LETHAL Comedy

Deadline reports that Hailee Steinfeld will star in director Kyle Newman's upcoming comedy BARELY LETHAL. The film, penned by John D'Arco, will be produced by Brett Ratner, RKO and Hopscotch Features.

The actress will portray a 16-year-old described as an "international assassin yearning for a "normal" adolescence who fakes her own death and enrolls as a senior in a suburban high school. She quickly learns that being popular can be more painful than getting water-boarded."

Steinfeld rose to fame for her portrayal of Mattie Ross in the 2010 film True Grit, for which she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress and a BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role.

Her 2013 projects include a remake of Romeo and Juliet, and as Violet, one of the leads in Can a Song Save Your Life?, a romance-drama directed by John Carney. She will also star as Petra Arkanian in a Sci-Fi action and adventure film directed by Gavin Hood, called Ender's Game, which is based on the book by Orson Scott Card.