Justin Theroux has been cast as the lead in the pilot for The Leftovers, a potential new HBO series from LOST co-creator and showrunner Damon Lindelof.

The Leftovers is based on the book of the same name by author Tom Perrotta, and takes place in a world after the Rapture (or as it’s known in the book, the “Sudden Departure”) has happened, and things are—as you might imagine—not nearly the same as they once were.

Here’s a full description of the book from Amazon:

What if””whoosh, right now, with no explanation””a number of us simply vanished? Would some of us collapse? Would others of us go on, one foot in front of the other, as we did before the world turned upside down?

That’s what the bewildered citizens of Mapleton, who lost many of their neighbors, friends and lovers in the event known as the Sudden Departure, have to figure out. Because nothing has been the same since it happened””not marriages, not friendships, not even the relationships between parents and children.

Kevin Garvey, Mapleton’s new mayor, wants to speed up the healing process, to bring a sense of renewed hope and purpose to his traumatized community. Kevin’s own family has fallen apart in the wake of the disaster: his wife, Laurie, has left to join the Guilty Remnant, a homegrown cult whose members take a vow of silence; his son, Tom, is gone, too, dropping out of college to follow a sketchy prophet named Holy Wayne. Only Kevin’s teenaged daughter, Jill, remains, and she’s definitely not the sweet “A” student she used to be. Kevin wants to help her, but he’s distracted by his growing relationship with Nora Durst, a woman who lost her entire family on October 14th and is still reeling from the tragedy, even as she struggles to move beyond it and make a new start.

Theroux will play Garvey in the pilot, and the full series if HBO orders one. The actor has appeared in numerous titles over the years, including American Psycho, Mulholland Drive, Six Feet Under, Your Highness, and Wanderlust. He’s also an established writer, penning the scripts for Tropic Thunder, Iron Man 2, and Rock of Ages.

He also, fittingly enough, starred as Jesus H. Christ in the 2007 comedy The Ten.

Are you interested in seeing The Leftovers?

[Source: Deadline]