Blake Lively to star in The Hick

Blake Lively has joined the cast of indie thriller 'Hick'.

The 23-year-old actress has revealed she will play the drug addicted mother of a 13-year-old Nebraskan girl (Chloe Moretz) who runs away to Las Vegas armed with a gun after her parents abandon her.

Although the 'Gossip Girl' had been tipped to take on the role of a grifter - a practitioner of confidence tricks - named Glenda who meets the film's heroine and takes her under her wing, she explained her role is much different.

She said: "I play a mother of a 13 year old, a Southern woman who is also a meth addict."

'My Week With Marilyn' star Eddie Redmayne has signed up to play a loner who tries luring the young girl away, and who also shares a past with Glenda.

Andrea Portes has written the script based on her debut novel 'Hick' with Derick Martini set to direct.

Steven Siebert and Christian Taylor will produce the movie through Lighthouse Entertainment and Taylor Lane Productions while Charles de Portes is executive producing.

Blake - who was widely praised for her portrayal of the drug addict mother of a baby in Ben Affleck's 'The Town' - will next be seen on the big screen opposite Ryan Reynolds in 'Green Lantern' this summer.