While we’ve known for a while that the likes of Josh Brolin, Matt Damon and Jeff Bridges were all set to star in the Coen Brothers’ remake of the John Wayne classic, True Grit, perhaps the most important role hasn’t been filled until now. The 1969 film was mainly about drunken, hard nosed U.S. Marshal Rooster Cogburn, but the Coens have been insistent that their film would be told through the eyes of the teenage girl who hires the lawman to track down her father’s killer in hostile Indian territory.
However, the pivotal role of the young Mattie Ross has now been cast, with the Coens choosing 13-year-old Hailee Steinfeld for the role (Bridges will take the Rooster Cogburn part). The directors deliberately wnated to find an unknown actress for the role, and while Steinfeld has a few credits in things nobody’s seen, this will be by far her biggest role yet.
Shooting on True Grit is due to start next month in New Mexico, with a US release set for Christmas Day (which suggests Paramount is already thinking about possible Oscars for the film).