Here’s a round-up of the latest casting news coming out of Hollywood.
Richard Jenkins, Oscar nominated star of The Visitor, has signed up to co-star with Brad Pitt in Andrew Dominik’s Cogan’s Trade. Pitt will play Jackie Cogan, an enforcer who is investigating the robbery of a high-stakes poker tournament, which was played under mob protection. Richard Jenkins will play a lawyer who provides Cogan with inside information regarding the game. (Source: Variety)
Dakota Fanning has a slightly unexpected new role, playing Pricess Margaret (yes, really) in A Girl’s Night Out. The latest movie to feature the modern royal family will follow the romantic adventure of teen princesses Margaret and Elizabeth on VE Day in 1945. Michael Hoffman (The Last Station) is set to direct the movie once he’s finished Gambit, starring Colin Firth and Cameron Diaz. The actress playing Elizabeth is expected to be announced shortly. (Source: Variety)
Despite Goldeneye and X-Men, Famke Janssen isn’t an actress we see an awful lot of in major movies, but now she’s got a role in Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters, alongside Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton. The film will follow a grown up Hansel and Gretel who’ve become bounty hunters of fairy tale creatures, and are mainly on the look out for the witches who tried to kill them. Janssen will play the leader of that band of magical miscreants. (Source: Deadline)
Ed Harris and Diane Keaton will headline the indie romance, The Look Of Love, from a script by Arie Posnin (who will also direct) and Matthew MacDuffie. The film is about a widow who meets a man who looks exactly like her dead husband, rekindling old feelings. That sounds a bit creepy, but hopefully the film won’t be. (Source: Variety)
Daryl Hannah, Thora Birch and Tom Sizemore have joined the cast of Snuff, based on the Chuck Palahniuk novel of the same name. The story centers on an aging porn star, Cassie Wright (Daryl Hannah), who tries to set the record for the biggest gang-bang in history by having sex with 600 men in one day. Tom Sizemore will play Mr. 600, the man whos introduced Cassie to the porn industry in the first place, and Thora Birch will be Sheila, Cassie’s personal assistant. The book also follows two other men who are part of the gang bang – a 20-something year old who think Cassie may be his mum, and a TV exec looking to get his life back on track. While it sounds like a non-stop orgy (literally), the novel actually has relatively little sex, and instead focusses of people bonding over a unusual shared project. Fabien Martorell is co-writing and will direct. (Source: ChuckPalahniuk.net)
And finally just a couple of confirmations of things we’ve reported on before. Julia Roberts, who was recently in final negotiation to play the Evil Queen in The Brothers Grimm: Snow White, has now inked her deal and been confirmed for the role, pitting her against Charlize Theron, who plays the same character in the rival Snow White And The Huntsman.
Also confirmed is Meryl Streep for Great hope Springs. She was said to be up for the role several months ago, but we didn’t hear any more until now. However while reports last August said Jeff Bridges was also going to star, it isn’t clear if he’s still attached. It also appears there’s been a change of directors, as while Jessie Nelson (I Am Sam) was going to helm, the job has now gone to David Frankel, who worked with Streep on The Devil Wears Prada. The film is about a couple, played by Streep and Bridges, who attend a weekend of intensive counselling in an effort to save their marriage. Shooting should begin in August. (Source: Variety)