Ang Lee hasn't been having the easiest of times putting together his planned adaptation of Yann Martel's Booker Prize-winning novel, The Life Of Pi, with pre-production stretching on endlessly, partly due to financing problems. However he's slowly been casting the movie, with Dehli high-schooler Suraj Sharma installed in the title role, alongside Gerard Depardiue, Irrfan Khan, Adil Hussan and bollywood star Tabu.
Now Variety reports that Tobey Maguire has signed up for a supporting role. The story centers on Pi (Suraj Sharma), a teenager who gets set adrift after a shipwreck and survives227 days, with only a hyena, an injured zebra, an orangutan and a hungry Bengal tiger for company. Maguire will play a writer who interviews the adult Pi about the experience.
The movie is planned as a 3D family adeventure, although as it's not your usual tale, Lee has had difficulty persuading Fox to part witht he $50 million+ he needs to make the movie. However it looks like things are now moving forward, with a December 2012 release date already pencilled in.