Quartet of Up and Comers Cast as Michael Bay’s “Ninja Turtles”

March 25, 2013 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting Leave a comment

turtles Michael Bay and director Jonathan Liebesman have found their “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” for the new reboot of the comic book characters and pop culture icons, according to Deadline. Megan Fox had been set as the female lead, and now she will be joined – via motion capture – by Jeremy Howard, Noel Fisher, Alan Ritchson and Pete Ploszek.

Ploszek will play Leonardo, the leader of the quartet of crime-fighting reptiles, while Ritchson will play the rebellious Raphael, Howard the inventor Donatello and Fisher the fan-favorite, pizza-loving comic relief Michaelangelo. Well, this is only based on the personalities of the turtles in previous incarnations. Instead of wearing bulky turtle suits as in previous live-action TMNT films, the new quartet will be motion-captured “Avatar”-style to make their characters even more distinctive and lifelike. Fox is set for the turtles’ human news reporter sidekick April, while villain Shredder will be cast soon, as well as their rat sensei Splinter, though there’s been no mention of him thus far.

All four turtles are relative unknowns who stand to get a boost from this would-be franchise. Fisher and Ritchson already have bit parts in giant franchises – “The Twilight Saga” and “The Hunger Games”, respectively, while Ploszek only has guest spots on TV shows like “Parks and Recreation” under his belt. Howard has played that guy you recognize in a bunch of stuff, and most recently wrapped Tribeca-bound indie rom com “The Pretty One” with Zoe Kazan and Jake Johnson.

Robert Pattinson, Max Irons, Sam Claflin and Douglas Booth In Talks for “Posh”

March 15, 2013 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting 2 Comments

posh Make room for the new Brit Pack. Some of the hottest rising British actors are in various stages of negotiations for “An Education” director Lone Scherfig’s adaptation of play “Posh”, with The Daily Mail reporting “Twilight”‘s Robert Pattinson, “The Hunger Games”‘ Sam Claflin, “The Host”‘s Max Irons and “Jupiter Ascending” star Douglas Booth are just four of the names being bandied about.

An adaptation of Laura Wade’s 2010 hit play of the same name, Irons, Pattinson, Claflin and Booth would play members of The Riot Club, a fictional version of The Bullingdon Club, an exclusive society at Oxford University to which such prominent British figures as Prime Minister David Cameron belonged. The entire play is set over the course of one evening when the ten members of the club have their termly dinner. As their President, James, considers leaving his post, the other boys jocky for position, leading to tragic consequences. Daily Mail reports Irons is being sought for one of the lead roles, while Pattinson is still in very early talks and also mulling over other projects.

Irons, son of Jeremy Irons, was last seen in “Red Riding Hood” and will soon appear opposite Saoirse Ronan in “The Host”, so he could probably use a film such as this, which will show off more serious acting chops. Pattinson was the original Stephenie Meyer heartthrob, having originated Edward Cullen to screaming fans in “Twilight” in 2008 and only wrapped up the five film series last November. he’s moved on to much more interesting projects, including the currently filming David Michod thriller “The Rover.”

Claflin is one of our Faces to Watch in 2013, mostly because “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” may test once and for all whether he has blockbuster leading man potential (his past blockbuster roles in “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” and “Snow White and the Huntsman” were rather lackluster). Booth, the only one without a YA novel franchise adaptation under his belt, will be seen as one half of the titular “Romeo and Juliet” opposite Hailee Steinfeld later this year and is now filming the Wachowskis’ “Jupiter Ascending” with Channing Tatum and Mila Kunis.

Jim Sturgess, Kristen Stewart and Elizabeth Banks try on “The Big Shoe”

February 7, 2013 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting 1 Comment

Jim Sturgess, Kristen Stewart and Elizabeth Banks will star in indie comedy “The Big Shoe”, reports Deadline from Berlin, where the film’s rights are out to buyers.

“Secretary” helmer Steven Shainberg will direct from a script he co-wrote with Mickey Birnbaum. Sturgess plays a gifted shoe designer who wants to break away from the family business when they attempt to make him sell out for commercial gain. His mother hires a psychotherapist named Mary Kate (Banks) and a “muse” named Delphi (Stewart) to lure him back. Susan Sarandon had been rumored for the mother role but it’s unclear if she still is. Filming is set to begin on June 17th.

Sturgess had been poised for a breakout about five years ago with the one-two punch of “Across the Universe” and “21″, but has fizzled a bit. He now seems ready for a comeback after starring in last year’s “Cloud Atlas” for the Wackowskis and recently landing on Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy” shortlist. Stewart recently wrapped up her star-making vampire saga with “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part II” and is attached to grifter comedy “Focus”, which is searching for its male lead after Ben Affleck dropped out. Banks is smack dab in the middle of a “Twilight”-esque phenomenon as she plays Effie in “The Hunger Games”, and recently wrapped up filming on the second installment “Catching Fire.” She’ was last seen in surprise comedy hit “Pitch Perfect”, which she also produced, and is currently filming rom com “Walk of Shame” opposite James Marsden.

“Twilight” actor Kellan Lutz takes lead role in potential new franchise “Tatua”

November 27, 2012 | Posted by Rebecca Lewis in Casting 1 Comment

As the last installment of the worldwide box office smash “Twilight Saga” hits cinemas, the cast begin to look for new challenges and Kellan Lutz, who starred in the films as Edward Cullen’s brother Emmett, is one of the actors looking to move into a new franchise, signing on to star in a new genre film, “Tatua“.

Based on an original concept from comic book creators Paul Jenkins and Rob Prior and adapted by Paul Layden, “Tatua” “is about a man (Lutz) with a rare blood type that allows him to be tattooed with a powerful ink. He is able to pull those weapons straight off his skin, giving him an enviable leg up as a covert assassin.”

But Lutz’s assassin soon becomes embroiled in a personal battle when his son is kidnapped by a notoriously violent target, and he must use the tattooed weapons despite the fact that they take a toll on his body, as they “are culled from the combination of the ink, the assassin’s blood and adrenaline.”

Deadline reports that Aaron Sims will make his directorial debut on the film and production is set to begin in Toronto next March.

It’s a gamble for the producers to chose Lutz who has yet to make an impression Hollywood. Producer Rick Schwartz told Deadline “Kellan was in the foreground and the background of the Twilight Saga films, but he is a formidable physical presence and this is an opportunity for him to step up.”

Lutz remained firmly in the background for the five Twilight films but provided some of the comic relief in the most recent film “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2“. He starred in 2011′s “Immortals” with Henry Cavill and earlier this year joined Nina Dobrev in “Kid Cannabis“, an adaptation of a 2005 Rolling Stone article which told the true story of suburban teens from Idaho who built a multimillion-dollar marijuana empire.

“Twilight” star Ashley Greene may join Haley Bennett in “Satanic” thriller

November 9, 2012 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting 1 Comment

“Twilight” star Ashley Greene is being eyed for a role in thriller/horror “Satanic” (formerly titled “Kristy”), according to The Wrap. The Weinstein backed film already has Haley Bennett cast in the lead role, and revolves around a group of college students who are attacked in their dorms over Thanksgiving break. Bennett’s Kristy leads the group in their attempt to survive and unmask their attackers. Oliver Blackburn is directing from a script by Anthony Jaswinski. Filming is expected to begin in mid-November and last through December in New Orleans.

Greene is most known for her role as Alice Cullen in “Twilight”, the finale of which, “Breaking Dawn Part II”, wraps up the vampire saga when it releases next week. She was last seen in horror pic “The Apparition” opposite Sebestian Stan, as well as quirky indie comedy “Butter” opposite Jennifer Garner and Olivia Wilde and recently wrapped up shooting on indie musical drama “CBGB”, based on the iconic New York night club.

Diego Boneta and Cam Gigandet joining Gina Carano in “In the Blood”

November 7, 2012 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting 2 Comments

Diego Boneta and Cam Gigandet will take roles in revenge thriller “In the Blood”, according to Deadline, who reports Boneta is set, while Gigandet is in talks. The guys will be supporting new action star Gina Carano, who signed on to headline in February.

John Stockwell will direct the film from a screenplay by James Robert Johnson and Bennett Yellin, which revolves around Carano’s character Ava, who goes after two men she believes have kidnapped her husband during their South American honeymoon. Gigandet is playing the husband, while Boneta will play a local who is roped into helping her.

Stockwell recently directed Gigandet in “Seal Team Six: The Raid On Osama bin Laden”, which went directly to TV. The original “Twilight” villain. Gigandet has also appeared in “Easy A”, “Priest” and “Won’t Back Down.” Boneta has appeared on teen TV series like “90210″ and “Pretty Little Liars”, but is mostly known for his lead role in this summer’s musical “Rock of Ages.”

Kristen Stewart joins grifter romance “Focus” opposite Ben Affleck

November 2, 2012 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting Leave a comment

So Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone will not reunite for a third time after all. The filmmakers behind “Crazy Stupid Love” had been hoping to get their adorable twosome back on screen together for con-man romance/action flick “Focus”, but it never came together, and Warner Bros cast Ben Affleck in Gosling’s role instead. Today Variety reports Affleck has found his leading lady in “Twilight” star Kristen Stewart.

Glenn Ficarra and John Requa will direct their script, which is set in the world of cons and tells the story of a veteran grifter who gets romantically involved with a newcomer. Things don’t work out and complications ensue when they are reunited in the future. Stewart and Affleck have a nearly 20 year age gap between them (again: um, eww), so this project definitely sounded more appetizing when it had Gosling and Stone attached, but we can’t deny it’s an interesting premise and are for now cautiously looking forward to how this new configuration works, chemistry wise. The studio is said to be keen to rush this into production and with their two leads locked in, that should be no problem now.

Stewart says goodbye to the franchise that made her a star as “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part II”, the last of the vampire love story, releases in November. She’ll also be seen in Walter Salles’ long-gestating adaptation of “On the Road” (which has its ups and downs), out in December. After dropping out of Nick Cassavetes’ “Cali” recently, Stewart has no other upcoming projects lined up.

“Twilight” villain Rachelle Lefevre joining actioners “White House Down” and “Homefront”

September 24, 2012 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting Leave a comment

She terrorized Edward and Bella for two movies, now “Twilight”‘s original villainess Rachelle Lefevre is ready for more action. THR reports Lefevre has taken on supporting roles in a pair of upcoming action flicks, Roland Emmerich’s “White House Down” starring Channing Tatum, and Gary Fleder’s Jason Statham starrer “Homefront.”

“White House Down” centers around a paramilitary takeover of the White House, while Tatum plays an ex-CIA agent who’s tasked with saving the President and the country. Jamie Foxx stars as the President, while Maggie Gyllenhaal, Richard Jenkins and Jason Clarke round out the cast. Lefevre is in line to play Tatum’s ex-wife. “Homefront” sees Statham an ex-DEA agent fighting a local drug lord in a small town. Lefevre plays the school psychologist who tries to warn families about the hidden dangers in the neighborhood. The film also stars Kate Bosworth and James Franco. “White House Down” is filming now in Montreal, while “Homefront” begins next month in New Orleans.

Lefevre, who was famously fired and replaced by Bryce Dallas Howard in the role of villainous Victoria after the second installment of “Twilight”, “New Moon”, also appeared in “Barney’s Version” and was a regular on short-lived ABC drama “Off the Map.”

Robert Pattinson to play a young Lawrence of Arabia, joins Naomi Watts in Werner Herzog’s “Queen of the Desert”

August 14, 2012 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting 1 Comment

Robert Pattinson continues to distance himself from the teenage dreamboat Edward Cullen, with Variety now reporting the “Twilight” heartthrob has joined Naomi Watts in Werner Herzog’s indie drama “Queen of the Desert”, in which he’ll play a young Lawrence of Arabia.

Watts stars as writer Gertrude Bell in the flick that chronicles “Bell’s life as a writer, archaeologist, explorer, cartographer and political attache for the British Empire. One of the first women to graduate from Oxford at the turn of the 20th century, she traveled through the Middle East, defining the borders of Iraq, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.” Pattinson’s supporting role will be that of T.E. Lawrence, a British army officer whose brilliant writing of his experiences in WWI, particularly in his best known “Seven Pillars of Wonder”, earned him international acclaim as Lawrence of Arabia and became the subject of the iconic 1962 film starring Peter O’Toole. Lawrence and Bell were good friends and helped establish the Hashemite dynasties in Jordan and Iraq in the 1910s. Filming is scheduled for late fall.

Pattinson is currently making the promo rounds gearing up for the US release of David Cronenberg’s Cannes premiere “Cosmopolis”, while his final appearance as Edward Cullen in “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part II” will roll out in November. After the Herzog film Pattinson is scheduled to head to Australia for David Michod’s futuristic thriller “The Rover” opposite Guy Pearce, and he’s also attached to Iraq War thriller “Mission: Blacklist”, about the hunt for Saddam Hussein.

Paul Dano and Rooney Mara out, Jesse Eisenberg and Dakota Fanning in for indie thriller “Night Moves”

August 13, 2012 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting 1 Comment

There will be no “Meek’s Cutoff” reunion after all. After nearly a year, Kelly Reichardt’s eco-terrorist thriller “Night Moves” is getting a bit of a cast makeover as it moves closer to production. Peter Sarsgaard and Paul Dano had been set to play the two male leads, while Rooney Mara was circling the female lead, but now Variety reports Jesse Eisenberg and Dakota Fanning will be taking over the roles vacated by Dano and Mara.

The trio of actors will play a group of eco-terrorists who plot to blow up a dam. Eisenberg will be the ringleader, Fanning the rich young girl who funds the project, and Sarsgaard the mastermind behind the plan. Sarsgaard spoke last year of his character’s motivations: “I can understand how my character gets to the point of wanting to blow up a dam. I never want to do this, but I can understand how someone can want to do that. We have a gun pointed to our planet. We see that the demonstrations are not working because they are being tackled with pepper [spray]… so you get the radical movement. I can understand that.” Production is scheduled to begin in October in Oregon.

Eisenberg has stayed busy since getting his first Oscar nomination in David Fincher’s 2010 masterpiece “The Social Network.” After a double dose of indies in “Why Stop Now” and “Free Samples”, Eisenberg starred in Woody Allen’s “Midnight in Paris” follow-up, “To Rome With Love”, opposite Ellen Page. He’s currently filming “The Double”, a comedy based on Dostoyevsky’s novella, opposite Mia Wasikowska and will also soon be seen in magician heist thriller “Now You See Me” with Dave Franco. Fanning is currently filming coming-of-age drama “Very Good Girls” opposite Elizabeth Olsen and has wrapped on indies “Now Is Good” (which showed at Cannes and which we didn’t really care for) and “The Motel Life.” She’ll also have one last appearance as vampire villainous Jane in “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2″, out in November.

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