Paul Mescal and Saoirse Ronan are a married couple pushed to their limits in first look at new apocalyptic thriller

Paul Mescal and Saoirse Ronan are set to star in a new apocalyptic thriller – and we now have our first look at the upcoming movie, Foe, courtesy of some exclusive photos from Vanity Fair.

Set 40 years in the future, Junior (Mescal) and his wife Henrietta (Ronan) live on a rural, isolated farm. One day, a stranger (Aaron Pierre) arrives, claiming to be from the government, and tells Junior that he has to leave his home for several months to work on a space program, which has the aim of moving humanity away from a rapidly deteriorating planet Earth, where floods and fires dominate the landscape. While he's gone, though, Henrietta is assured that she won't be alone – so far, so cryptic.

Foe was directed by Garth Davis, who previously helmed Lion, starring Dev Patel and Nicole Kidman, and co-written by Davis and Ian Reid. Reid wrote the novel that the film is based on, as well as I'm Thinking of Ending Things, which was adapted into a movie by Charlie Kaufman, starring Jessie Buckley and Jesse Plemons.

With Reid's story at the heart of this film, then, Foe looks set to be a twisty psychological thriller. It's also a domestic, claustrophobic tale, and Reid told Vanity Fair that when he first wrote the novel, he was primarily interested in exploring the effects a long-term relationship has on a couple: "That particular kind of relationship that felt somehow confining, that wasn't affected by one dramatic event – the way we often see in novels and in films – but by something that was happening over time."

Foe is set to arrive in cinemas on October 6. In the meantime, check out our guide to the rest of the year's most exciting movie release dates.