Elle Fanning to headline teen novel adaptation “Olive’s Ocean”

August 15, 2012 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting Leave a comment

Elle Fanning will star in the big screen adaptation of Kevin Henkes’ award-winning Young Adult novel “Olive’s Ocean”, according to Deadline. Producers behind the still in development project has just set Christina Hammonds Reed to adapt the screenplay.

Fanning will play Martha, a normal 12 year old girl who gets her first real taste of growing up when she’s handed a page out of the journal of a classmate recently killed in a car accident. Olive wanted to be a writer, just like Martha and also thought of Martha as “the nicest person in my whole entire class.” A summer of soul searching and coming of age follows as she vacations with her family on Cape Cod.

Fanning seems to have been instrumental in bringing this project together, as producer Donald Rosenfeld optioned the rights while working on “Effie” with Fanning’s older sister Dakota. He asked the younger Fanning what her favorite book was, and now she’ll get to star in the movie. Boy, I guess it’s not easy growing up anywhere! “I haven’t worked with a more dedicated actor than Dakota and can’t wait to work with Elle,” Rosenfeld tells Deadline. “There is such talent, they are young but they are old souls.”

At the tender age of 14 Fanning has already proven herself a capable and versatile actress. She won raves for her performance as a small town girl and budding young actress in JJ Abrams and Steven Spielberg’s alien adventure caper “Super 8″ and went just about 180 in the opposite direction in Francis Ford Coppola’s experimental gothic tale “Twixt.” Another altogether different performance showed up in Cameron Crowe’s “We Bought a Zoo”, and she’ll next head to TIFF for the premiere of British coming of age drama “Ginger and Rosa.” She’s currently playing the slumbering princess in Disney’s Sleeping Beauty remake “Maleficent”, with Angelina Jolie in the title role.

Elle Fanning and Olly Alexander topline musical “God Help the Girl” from Belle and Sebastian singer Stuart Murdoch

April 10, 2012 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting 2 Comments

At only 13 years old, Elle Fanning has already tackled comedy, drama, horror and action on the big screen, and now it looks like she’ll give musicals a try. Variety reports the younger Fanning sister – move over, Dakota – is in negotiations to star in musical “God Help the Girl”, the passion project of Stuart Murdoch, lead singer of indie folk band Belle and Sebastian. Additionally, British rising star Olly Alexander is joining the cast as well. Both young thesps were cast after an extensive international search that spanned 3 years.

The film has long been in the works since 2003 when Murdoch wrote some “girl group” sounding songs that eventually led to the release of a concept album of the same name. The story follows a young woman named Eve who drops out of college and works a mundane job while dreaming of becoming a singer/songwriter. Alexander will play James, Eve’s guitarist accompaniment while Fanning will play a young aspiring guitar player named Cass, who James mentors and who tags along with the duo to their various gigs. The female lead of Eve has not been cast but presumably will not be played by singer Catherine Ireton, who sang Eve’s songs on the concept album. Murdoch has written the script and will make his directorial debut when “God Help the Girl” begins filming in June on location in Glasgow.

Alexander’s screen credits have been piling up and include Jane Campion’s “Bright Star”, “Enter the Void” and Mike Newell’s upcoming “Great Expectations”, in which he plays Herbert Pocket opposite Jeremy Irvine as Pip. Fanning won raves for her performance as a small town girl and budding young actress in JJ Abrams and Steven Spielberg’s alien adventure caper “Super 8″ and went just about 180 in the opposite direction in Francis Ford Coppola’s experimental gothic tale “Twixt.” Another altogether different performance showed up in Cameron Crowe’s “We Bought a Zoo”, and she most recently wrapped up playing a 1960s peace-loving flower child in British family drama “Bomb.” Immediately following “God Help the Girl” she’ll go head to head with Angelina Jolie as she plays Sleeping Beauty to Jolie’s “Maleficent.”

Elle Fanning may slumber her way through “Maleficent” opposite Angelina Jolie

March 8, 2012 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting Leave a comment

Well, Hollywood is so not over fairy tales yet (even though audiences may be), and today, a big piece of casting news on one of the more high profile fairy tale adaptations. Angelina Jolie has long been attached to play the titular evil queen in Disney’s “Malificent” and now Twitch Film reports young rising star Elle Fanning is in talks to play the princess she terrorizes. That would be Princess Aurora, aka Sleeping Beauty.

At one point a directing vehicle for Tim Burton, it will now be helmed by Robert Stromberg, with Jolie staying on. While plot details are probably still being worked out, we can only assume that, in the vein of Broadway success “Wicked”, it’ll tell the story of the princess who falls into a 100 year slumber after pricking her finger on a cursed spinning wheel, from the perspective of Jolie’s Malificent and perhaps make the once one-dimensional villain somewhat more sympathetic. Though we can’t help but think how awesome a bad-ass unrepentant sorceress would be in Jolie’s hands. And as for the beautiful and innocent princess who’s nowhere near as well developed as some of her fairy tale counterparts, the doll-like Fanning seems perfectly cast.

That’s not to say Fanning is just a pretty face. At the tender age of 14 she’s already proven herself a capable and versatile actress. She won raves for her performance as a small town girl and budding young actress in JJ Abrams and Steven Spielberg’s alien adventure caper “Super 8″ and went just about 180 in the opposite direction in Francis Ford Coppola’s experimental gothic tale “Twixt.” Another altogether different performance showed up in Cameron Crowe’s “We Bought a Zoo”, and she’ll next head to the 1960s to play a peace-loving flower child in British family drama “Bomb.”

“Friday Night Lights” star Kyle Chandler to “Kill Bin Laden” for Kathryn Bigelow

February 17, 2012 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting Leave a comment

Seriously, this movie just gets better and better. With Oscar-winning director Kathryn Bigelow behind the camera and a cast that already included Joel Edgerton, Jessica Chastain, Chris Pratt, Mark Strong and Edgar Ramirez, the latest bit of news feels like an answer to the question “What do you give the movie that already has everything?” How about a little dash of Coach Taylor? Deadline reports “Friday Night Lights” star Kyle Chandler is the latest to join the cast on the topical untitled Navy SEALs thriller previously titled “Kill Bin Laden.”

The secretive filmmakers won’t comment on any of the actors who have been cast so far, but Deadline reports Chandler will be playing a CIA agent. Edgerton, Clarke and Pratt play SEALS, while Chastain will be a military analyst. Strong and Ramirez’s roles are unknown. Though the film had been in development for a couple of years (and originally revolved around an unsuccessful earlier assassination attempt on the Al Qaeda leader), it became a top priority when Osama Bin Laden was really killed by Navy SEAL Team 6 last year in a covert operation. Bigelow and screenwriter Mark Boal are expected to rewrite the ending of their film to reflect the thrilling new development. Filming is imminent with a release date already set for December 19, 2012.

“Friday Night Lights” star Kyle Chandler leaves the football field for the political backroom in “Broken City”

November 28, 2011 | Posted by Rebecca Lewis in Casting Leave a comment

One of our favorite TV shows “Friday Night Lights” recently finished after five brilliant seasons, and ended on a high note – Kyle Chandler finally won a much deserved Best Actor Emmy for his beloved role as Coach Eric Taylor. But, as we discussed on our podcast two weeks ago, it can sometimes be hard for TV actors to move into films. For Chandler, the transition is proving easy, as the actor has now lined up a role in Allen Hughes’ “Broken City.”

Starring alongside Mark Wahlberg and Russell Crowe, the film follows Wahlberg’s detective, who is hired by a powerful politician (Crowe) to identify his wife’s lover. However, the lover is soon found dead. Also featuring Barry Pepper as a mayoral candidate, Chandler will play “the nuts and bolts component of [Barry's] political team, the kind of guy who’s a star in his own right but prefers working behind the scenes.”

Since beginning work in 2006 on “Friday Night Lights”, Chandler has only found time to star in a few films, including 2008′s “The Day The Earth Stood Still” with Keanu Reeves and this year’s box office hit “Super 8.” Post-”Lights”, he recently wrapped wartime drama “Argo”, which has Ben Affleck in the director’s chair as well as in front of the camera.

Elle Fanning goes Flower Child in 60s set drama “Bomb”

November 18, 2011 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting 1 Comment

Elle Fanning and Alessandro Nivolo have signed on for indie drama “Bomb”, according to Deadline. Sally Potter wrote the screenplay and will direct the film set in the tumultuous 1960s. Fanning plays a rebellious teenager “who wants to save the world from nuclear annihilation, but as the cold war meets the sexual revolution, it’s her family that threatens to explode.” Nivolo will be a charismatic writer in London who has an affair with his daughter’s best friend, straining their relationship. It’s unclear if Fanning is his daughter, her friend, or someone else altogether.

Potter says of Fanning: “Elle has a subtlety and range beyond her years. Her unaffected enthusiasm for work is a joy. She can move you to tears and then light up the room with her radiant smile, the perfect presence at the center of this volatile story.” UPDATE: The Daily Mail adds that newcomer Australian actress Alice Englert has also joined the cast, playing Alice, the boy crazy best friend of Fanning’s brainy character Ginger. Presumably this means Nivolo will have an affair with Alice, making Ginger the daughter of the unraveling family.

Fanning, one of our faces to watch in 2011, certainly hasn’t disappointed and has unquestionably stepped out from big sister Dakota’s shadow. She won raves for her performance as a small town girl and budding young actress in JJ Abrams and Steven Spielberg’s alien adventure caper “Super 8″ and went just about 180 in the opposite direction in Francis Ford Coppola’s experimental gothic tale “Twixt.” She’s got one more high profile project still to come this year, playing a young employee in Cameron Crowe’s “We Bought a Zoo.”

Hollywood Awards adds Carey Mulligan, Shailene Woodley and more as honorees

October 10, 2011 | Posted by Linda Ge in Awards 1 Comment

Looks like the folks over at the Hollywood Awards love up and comers as much as we do. Already giving awards to Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Breakthrough Actor), Jessica Chastain (Breakthrough Actress) and Felicity Jones (New Hollywood), the annual ceremony will also honor Jean Dujardin and Berenice Bejo of “The Artist”, Elle Fanning of “Super 8″, Amber Heard of “The Rum Diary”, Anton Yelchin of “Like Crazy”, Andrea Riseborough of “W.E.” and Shailene Woodley of “The Descendents” with the Hollywood Spotlight Award, intended to highlight promising up and coming actors who gave breakthrough performances this year in film.

Carey Mulligan, who took home Breakthrough Actress for “An Education” in 2009, will also be honored with the Hollywood Supporting Actress Award for her role as wayward sister to Michael Fassbender in Steve McQueen’s critically acclaimed “Shame”, as well as a desperate young mother opposite Ryan Gosling in Nicolas Winding Refn’s “Drive.”

“It is a privilege to honor Carey Mulligan, Bérénice Bejo, Jean Dujardin, Elle Fanning, Amber Heard, Andrea Riseborough, Shaileen Woodley and Anton Yelchin for their great talent,” Carlos de Abreu, founder and executive director of the event, tells THR. Other actors given awards at the gala ceremony on October 24th include Michelle Williams for Best Actress for her role in “My Week with Marilyn”, Christopher Plummer for Supporting Actor for “Beginners” and Glenn Close for Career Achievement, but mostly for her passion project “Albert Nobbs.” The big ones, Director and Actor, will be announced later this week.

“The Hunger Games” tribute and “Super 8″ star to get lost in a haunted forest with “The Healer”

September 8, 2011 | Posted by Rebecca Lewis in Casting Leave a comment

Isabelle Fuhrman, who is to star in the upcoming The Hunger Games alongisde Jennifer Lawrence and Liam Hemsworth, has been cast alongside Super 8 star Joel Courtney, according to THR.

The Healer, to be directed by Giorgio Serafini, follows Chris, an ill father (presumably to be played by James Le Gros who has also been cast) who takes his teenage twins (Furhamn and Courtney) on a camping trip in order to recapture a previous closeness that no longer remains. The family end up lost in a haunted forest though, and are only able to survive as Chris – the “healer” – has the power to control their destinies.

In next year’s The Hunger Games, Fuhrman will be playing Clove, one of Katniss’ (Lawrence) greatest enemies while in the arena, whilst her previous credits include a starring role in horror film Orphan, where she played the title role.

For Courtney, this is just his third film role to date, with a role in Steven Spielberg’s hit sci-fi film Super 8 this past summer, and a lead role in the upcoming film Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn, alongside Jake T. Austin.

Jake T. Austin joins Joel Courtney in becoming iconic duo “Tom Sawyer & Huckleberry Finn”

June 29, 2011 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting Leave a comment

Joel Courtney has found his partner in crime. The young “Super 8″ star, who was cast as Tom Sawyer in a new adaptation of the Mark Twain classic last week, will be joined by Disney Channel star Jake T. Austin as the even more mischievous Huck Finn, reports Variety. The new film, “Tom Sawyer & Huckleberry Finn”, was written and will be directed by Jo Kaster.

Twain’s “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer” centers around a young boy growing up in a small town along the Mississippi River in the 19th Century. Among other shenanigans that include tricking other boys into whitewashing a fence for him, crushing on Becky Thatcher, playing along when the town thinks he’s died (even attending his own funeral), the A plot revolves around Tom and his best friend, Huck, the disadvantaged and neglected son of the town drunk, witnessing a murder and having to decide whether to save themselves or do the right thing and tell the truth when the wrong man is put on trial.

Austin is best known for his long-running role as the youngest sibling of Selena Gomez on the Disney Channel’s “Wizards of Waverly Place.” The show has wrapped up its final season but a second feature length film is still in the works. He has also appeared on the big screen in “Hotel for Dogs” and is part of Gary Marshall’s large ensemble comedy “New Year’s Eve.”

“Tom Sawyer & Huckleberry Finn” begins filming this August in – where else?! – Bulgaria.

“Super 8″ star Joel Courtney is the new “Tom Sawyer”

June 23, 2011 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting 3 Comments

Move over, Jonathan Taylor Thomas. It’s been 16 years since Mark Twain’s iconic trouble-maker has been seen on a big screen – in 1995′s “Tom and Huck”, which also starred the late Brad Renfro as Huckleberry Finn – but a new Tom Sawyer is finally on his way. Variety reports the young breakout star of JJ Abrams’ “Super 8″, Joel Courtney, has signed on to play Tom Sawyer in a new indie adaptation written and directed by Jo Kastner.

Like the 1995 film, Kastner’s “Tom Sawyer & Huckleberry Finn” seems to once again focus not only on Tom, but also on his partner in pranks and mischief, Huck. No word yet on whether it’ll be a faithful adaptation of Twain’s novel or take a more light-hearted Disney approach the way the 1995 film did.

Courtney had only been in Los Angeles for the summer, hoping to take some acting classes and maybe land a commercial gig, when a mysterious open casting call changed his life forever. Courtney landed the lead role in what was purported to be a film called “Little Darlings”, but actually turned out to be JJ Abrams and Steven Spielberg’s Goonies-meets-Cloverfield sci-fi blockbuster “Super 8″.

His career has inevitably taken off, and he will segue from “Tom Sawyer” immediately into “The Healer”, an indie sci-fi thriller about a father and his two children who go into the woods to bond but find themselves facing off against the supernatural when the forest turns out to be haunted. Giorgio Serafini will direct from his own script.

The new Tom and Huck will get into their misadventures this August on location in Bulgaria, substituting for 19th Century Missouri.

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