With shooting set to start in the next month or so, Robert Zeleckis is pulling together a strong cast for his return to live-action filmmaking, Flight. The latest to be in talks to join the movie, according to THR, are Melissa Leo and James Badge Dale.
Both of them are relatively recent breakouts, with Leo winning an Oscar for The Fighter while Dale has seen The Pacific propel him into roles in The Conspirator and the upcoming Shame, The Greay, A Single Shot and World War Z.
Flight revolves around Denzel Washington’s character, a pilot battling drug and alcohol abuse who becomes a hero when he saves the lives of his passengers after the plane’s engines malfunction. When an investigation into the crash uncovers the pilot’s substance abuse, they try to cover it up to preserve his image. Melissa Leo will play an investigator determined to expose the pilot, while James Badge Dale portrays a man dying of cancer.
Also set to star are Bruce Greewood, Don Cheadle and Kelly Reilly.