Sarah Paulson will star alongside Nicolas Cage in 'The Runner'.

The 38-year-old actress has joined the 'Ghost Rider' star in the cast of the upcoming contemporary political drama - which is written and will be directed by Austin Stark - according to Deadline.

'The Runner' is set in the aftermath of the BP oil spill of 2010 and centres on Colin Price (Cage), an idealistic but flawed congressman for New Orleans, who is forced to confront his dysfunctional life after his career is destroyed in a sex scandal.

Meanwhile, it has been confirmed that Paulson will take on the role of a PR consultant who Price hires to help him get back into politics.

Paper Street's Benji Kohn, Bingo Guhelmann and Chris Papavasiliou and Back Lot's Glenn Williamson will produce while Ruth Mutch, Noah Millman, Sam Bisbee, Tom Conigliaro and Erika Hampson are on-board as executive producers.

Paulson, who was nominated for an Emmy award for her role in 'American Horror Story: Asylum' and will return for the series' next instalment 'American Horror Story Freak Show', was last seen in the Oscar-winning '12 Years A Slave'.

Filming for 'The Runner' is scheduled to begin in New Orleans this month.