Ridley Scott and Daniel Espinosa are on board, but even the weight of their names hasn’t been enough to stop Christian Bale from bailing on Lionsgate studios new project Child 44, according to The Wrap.

The developers behind the project were keen to get the Batman actor on board, and had hoped that he’d say yes upon meeting them on Tuesday (November 13). However they were left disappointed when the star turned the Richard Price-written script down, leaving them with a dilemma as to where to go next. The film is based on the book of the same name by British novelist Tom Rob Smith. The plot focuses on central character Leo Demidov, who is a disgraced lawyer in the Stalin-era Soviet Union assigned to investigate the murders. A gritty tale, the book is based on the true story of the Ukrainian serial killer Andrei Chikatilo, who was executed for 52 murders and is the first in a trilogy of tomes exploring the impact of Stalin on the Soviet Union.

Lionsgate don’t have to panic just yet; in Scott and Espinosa they have names easily talented enough to make the film a success, but with Bale out of the frame it does leave the door wide open for someone else. They’ll have to be careful they make the right choice.