Ansel Elgort Is Augustus Waters in "The Fault in Our Stars" Opposite Shailene Woodley

From siblings to star-crossed lovers! EW reports rising star Ansel Elgort has been offered the male lead in "The Fault in Our Stars" opposite Shailene Woodley - who plays his sister in the currently-filming dystopian adaptation "Divergent." The two Read more

Dylan O'Brien Lands "The Maze Runner" Lead; Ki Hong Lee Also Joins

UPDATE: Director Wes Ball tweets that Ki Hong Lee has also joined the cast as Minho, a fellow Glader and ally to Thomas throughout the series. Lee is probably best known as a regular on short-lived ABC Family Read more

Shailene Woodley Confirmed for "The Fault in Our Stars"

I mean, duh, we called it. It has now been officially confirmed with glowing quotes from director, producer and author in tow that the increasingly in demand Shailene Woodley will play the lead role of Hazel Grace Lancaster Read more

Up and Comers Presents: 20 Faces to Watch in 2013

After a somewhat unpredictable year in which the stars we expected to break out largely didn't but fresh faces came out of nowhere to surprise us all, we are ready to look ahead to the new talent waiting to Read more

Up and Comers Presents: The Breakout Stars of 2012

Another year, another new crop of fresh talent. Just like last year, the hardest part is narrowing down which of the dozens of the year's rising stars shone the brightest. This year we heralded the arrival of the unlikeliest Read more
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g.i. joe

Channing Tatum in talks for crime drama “Foxcatcher” opposite Steve Carell

October 18, 2011 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting Leave a comment

Steve Carell and Channing Tatum: an odd couple on their own and not exactly names synonymous with the word Oscar. But that could change a year from now as The LA Times reports the two are teaming up for starmaking director Bennett Miller’s “Moneyball” follow-up: “Foxcatcher”, a true life murder/crime drama. Variety reported on Carell’s casting in September.

In the script by E. Max Frye and Dan Futterman, Carell will play John du Pont, a millionaire heir and sports enthusiast who was also a paranoid schizophrenic and inexplicably shot and killed Olympic gold medal-winning wrestler David Schultz (Tatum) in 1996. The two were good friends and no motive was ever established for the shooting, which took place at the wrestling training facility called Team Foxcatcher on his Pennsylvania estate and was witnessed by Schultz’s wife and du Pont’s head of security. Du Pont locked himself away in his mansion and talked with police negotiators by phone for two days after the shooting. He died in prison last year at the age of 72.

Shooting is tentatively scheduled to begin in early 2012.

Tatum will take a turn for the serious and prestigious if his deal closes on “Foxcatcher”, thus far known for lighter commercial fare such as “Step Up”, “Dear John” and “G.I. Joe.” He’ll next be seen in weepy romance drama “The Vow” with Rachel McAdams and two films with Steven Soderbergh: all-star actioner “Haywire” and “Magic Mike”, based on Tatum’s own experiences working as a male stripper at age 19. He’s also got two projects he produced, “Ten Year”, which he premiered at TIFF, and “21 Jump Street”, co-starring Jonah Hill and based on the classic TV series that launched the career of Johnny Depp.

“Social Network” star Joe Mazzello joins Channing Tatum and Adrianne Palicki in “G.I. Joe 2″

July 26, 2011 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting Leave a comment

Joe Mazzello is reporting for duty. The actor has won the coveted role of Mouse in “G.I. Joe: Cobra Strikes”, according to Deadline, a part that “a lot of young guys wanted.” He will join returning “G.I. Joe” stars Channing Tatum and Ray Park and fellow newbies Adrianne Palicki, DJ Cotrona and Dwayne Johnson in the sequel to the 2009 summer actioner based on the classic Hasbro army toys. Earlier reports indicated Paramount was courting the likes of Bruce Willis for the title role of G.I. Joe.

“Cobra Strikes” is being fast-tracked to fill a blockbuster void that existed in Paramount’s 2012 summer schedule. A report earlier this month from What’s Playing shed some light on the character of Mouse, who originated from the Sgt. Savage and Screaming Eagles series of toys. Said to be an 18-year-old Southern charmer with a pivotal role in the film, one casting agent was quoted as saying “the role would be Taylor Kitsch’s had he been just a spot younger” and the character is being used as a way to entice young teenage girls to the flick. You go, Dustin Moskovitz!

Mazzello was known to most audiences as “the kid from Jurassic Park” but has grown up to have a pretty successful career, as part of the ensemble cast of HBO’s Emmy-award winning wartime mini-series “The Pacific” and most notably as the aforementioned Dustin Moskovitz, nerdy roommate to Jesse Eisenberg’s Mark Zuckerberg and computer programmer for Facebook in David Fincher’s modern masterpiece “The Social Network.”

Adrianne Palicki is female lead Lady Jaye in “G.I. Joe: Cobra Strikes”

July 4, 2011 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting Leave a comment

“Friday Night Lights” star Adrianne Palicki has scored the female lead in one of those sequels no one really wants, “G.I. Joe: Cobra Strikes”, reports Deadline. Dwayne Johnson and D.J. Cotrona also recently signed on and the three newbies will join returning cast members Channing Tatum and Ray Park as Duke and Snake Eyes, respectively. Other cast members from 2009′s “G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra”, including Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Marlon Wayans and Rachel Nichols, are not expected to reprise their roles. As for G.I. Joe himself, the studio is said to be eyeing Bruce Willis, among others.

Palicki’s Alison R. Hart-Burnett – codename Lady Jaye – was originally created for the 1984 “G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero” animated series and is the team’s covert operations specialist. She shares a romantic relationship with Dashiell R. Faireborn – aka Flint – who is the Warrant Officer for the G.I. Joe Team and will be portrayed by Cotrona in “Cobra Strikes”. Paramount greenlit and fast-tracked the sequel despite lukewarm critical and box office response to “Rise of Cobra” because a blockbuster void existed for the studio for Summer 2011, with JJ Abrams’ “Star Trek” sequel deemed not ready in time. “Cobra Strikes” and Brad Pitt zombie apocalypse thriller “World War Z” will be the studio’s current offerings.

After a critically acclaimed run as troubled high schooler Tyra on NBC series “Friday Night Lights”, Palicki had trouble finding a breakout role. “Legion” underperformed, ambitious Fox series “Lone Star” was canceled after just two episodes and despite heavy buzz, her title role in the new “Wonder Woman” was never picked up by NBC, suspected to be due in large part to negative reactions to the updated costume and the remake of “Red Dawn” may never see a release at this rate. Will “Cobra Strikes” be the big breakout franchise moment for Palicki? We have our doubts, but are hopeful.