DEADLINE EXCLUSIVE: Rosamund Pike is negotiating for the female lead opposite Tom Cruise in One Shot, the Christopher McQuarrie-directed adaptation of the bestselling Lee Child novel series for Paramount Pictures and Skydance Productions. Pike was among a small group of actresses vying for the role. The British actress played Andromeda in Clash of the Titans 2, and she recently wrapped the David Frankel-directed The Big Year opposite Owen Wilson, Jack Black and Steve Martin, and the Rowan Atkinson comedy Johnny English Reborn.

Cruise is playing Jack Reacher, the retired military policeman who wanders the country with only his passport, bankbook, toothbrush and the clothes on his back. He finds his way into scrapes, taking the side of the underdog. In One Shot, Reacher investigates a case in which a lone sniper murders five victims before being captured. Reacher discovers it’s more than a simple open-and-shut case.

Pike will play Helen Rodin, a local defense attorney defending the man arrested for the shootings. She works with Reacher to bring the true culprits to justice. Don Granger and Cruise will produce through Mutual Film Company and C/W Productions. Skydance’s David Ellison and Dana Goldberg are producing as is Gary Levinsohn and Paula Wagner, and Ken Kamins is exec producer. UTA reps Pike with Shelly Browning and UK-based Dallas Smith.

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Tom Cruise may find his latest leading lady this weekend.

Cruise is gearing up to make One Shot, a Paramount-Skydance adaptation of a 2005 Lee Child crime thriller. Christopher McQuarrie, who wrote Cruise’s Valkyrie movie, penned the script and is directing

On Saturday, McQuarrie and the studio were reading at least three actresses for the female lead: Hayley Atwell, Alexa Davalos and Rosamund Pike.

Atwell is best known to US audiences as the female lead opposite Chris Evans in Captain America.

Davalos last appeared in Clash of the Titans as Andromeda and counts Defiance, The Mist and The Chronicles of Riddick amongst her credits.

Pike drew acclaim for her work in the British movie Made in Dagenham and Barney’s Version. She also appeared with Carey Mulligan in An Education. One Shot centers on a Jack Reacher, an ex-Army cop who gets sucked into the mystery surrounding the arrest of a sniperaccused of killing five random people in a shooting. The female role is that of tough lawyer and daughter of the discrict attorney.

The studio is said to be seeking a pedigreed yet non-A-list actress for the movie. Brit Marling was an early favorite but sources say her schedule didn’t work

The studio is eyeing a fall shoot in Pittsburgh. Paramount had no comment.