New York City Ballet (Natalie Portman) who may or may not be having delusions about a rival dancer (Mila Kunis)

As expected, Darren Aronofsky’s upcoming ballet thriller, Black Swan, has been picked up for distribution. Fox Searchlight, which also handled Aronofsky’s last project, The Wrestler, will co-finance the movie.

The story revolves around a young dancer at the New York City Ballet (Natalie Portman) who may or may not be having delusions about a rival dancer (Mila Kunis). The cast also includes Winona Ryder, Barbara Hershey and French actor Vincent Cassell. The project has been compared to The Others due to the film’s supernatural themes.

Shooting is expected to begin in New York City next month with a debut sometime in 2010.

Fox Searchlight will partner with Cross Creek pictures on the project.

Black Swan has created a large amount of buzz when it was announced that Portman will have an “extreme” sex scene with Kunis. Why that’s interesting still remains a mystery…