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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up in the air

Anna Kendrick and Gemma Arterton Join Ryan Reynolds in Psychological Thriller “The Voices”

April 22, 2013 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting Leave a comment

voices Ryan Reynolds, Gemma Arterton and Anna Kendrick are hearing things. According to Deadline, the trio are set to begin filming psychological thriller “The Voices” imminently in Berlin, with Reynolds in the role of a “lovable but strange bathtub factory worker” with an unrequited crush on a co-worker.

Iranian filmmaker Marjane Satrapi will direct the fantastical story, which really picks up when Reynolds’ Jerry is implicated in the accidental death of a co-worker (the aforementioned crush? It’s unclear), and goes on a journey with the help of his evil talking cat and benevolent talking dog. So there’s that. No word on who Kendrick and Arterton will play, though likely they aren’t just lending their voices to talking animals.

Arterton is most known for modestly successful actioners like “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time” and “Clash of the Titans” and was most recently seen in “Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters” opposite Jeremy Renner and British musical drama “Song for Marion.” Kendrick earned an Oscar nomination for her role opposite George Clooney in “Up in the Air” and most recently headlined surprise comedy musical hit “Pitch Perfect”. She will shoot another musical, “The Last Five Years”, opposite Broadway star Jeremy Jordan after wrapping on “Voices.”

Anna Kendrick, Felicity Jones, Imogen Poots front-runners for “Captain America 2″ female lead?

August 19, 2012 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting 9 Comments

Now that “Iron Man 3″ filming is underway and “Thor: The Dark World” is well on its way to production, attention turns to casting on “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”, the sequel to Joe Johnston’s hit Marvel “Avengers” prequel that saw Chris Evans as the quintessential American soldier and superhero leader.

With Evans back on board and Sebastian Stan most likely reprising his role as Bucky Barnes, who eventually becomes the titular Winter Soldier, as well as Anthony Mackie joining the team as Falcon, the search now turns to the female lead. The identity of the role is not revealed but has been speculated to be that of Sharon Carter, SHIELD agent and love interest to Evans’ Rogers, and descendant of his first love Peggy (played by Hayley Atwell in the first film). Page Six reports three young actresses who are considered front-runners for the role are Anna Kendrick, Felicity Jones and Imogen Poots. Anthony and Joseph Russo will direct “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”, with a release already set for April 4, 2014.

Jones and Poots are no strangers to shortlists. Jones, who broke out in Drake Doremus’ improv romance drama “Like Crazy”, most recently lost out on the female lead role in Kenneth Branagh’s “Jack Ryan” reboot to Keira Knightley, though she did win out over Poots – who has appeared in “Fright Night” and currently shot footage for Terrence Malick’s “Knight of Cups” – for the lead role in Ralph Fiennes’ Charles Dickens biopic “The Invisible Woman.” Kendrick, though critically lauded, has seemed to have a hard time breaking into leading lady status, often playing quirky, supporting roles in comedies instead. One of those roles – opposite George Clooney in Jason Reitman’s “Up in the Air” – did win her an Oscar nomination, so it’s obviously working for her, but the female lead role in “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” would still certainly be a major breakthrough for her.

Anna Kendrick is “Pitch Perfect” in new romantic comedy

September 1, 2011 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting 5 Comments

Anna Kendrick, Tony nominee by age 12 and musical theatre junkie, might finally achieve her dream of starring in a big screen musical. No doubt inspired partly by the “Glee” phenomenon, Universal is developing “Pitch Perfect”, a romatic comedy set in the world of collegiate a cappella groups. THR reports Kendrick is in early talks to take on the lead role, which would presumably allow Kendrick to put her Broadway-trained pipes to good use – finally!

Though discussions are still in the early stages, if she takes the role, Kendrick will play against type to be a goth-like, rebellious student who’s unhappy at the prospect of attending college where her father is a professor. When her singing ability is discovered, she becomes the secret weapon of the campus all-female a cappella group. The film will reunite Kendrick with Rebel Wilson, the “Bridesmaids” breakout with whom she co-stars in the currently filming “What to Expect When You’re Expecting.” Jason Moore directs the film which is based on the nonfiction book of the same name by Mickey Rapkin, with production slated to begin this fall in New Orleans.

Kendrick took over a year off from new films almost immediately after scoring an Oscar nomination for her role as Natalie opposite George Clooney in 2009′s “Up in the Air”, but seems intent on making up for lost time now, with no less than four films currently in production. She’s currently filming “What to Expect” opposite Chace Crawford in Atlanta concurrently with David Ayer’s cop drama “End of Watch” in Los Angeles and also voicing her first animated feature, “ParaNorman.” Additionally, she recently wrapped Lionsgate’s “micro-budget” horror comedy “Rapture-Palooza” and the final installment of the “Twilight” series, “Breaking Dawn.” The one film she did do right after the 2010 Oscars, Jonathan Levine’s cancer dramedy “50/50″ starring Joseph Gordon Levitt, will finally be released on September 30th.

Anna Kendrick also preparing for “What to Expect When You’re Expecting”

June 30, 2011 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting 2 Comments

As is to be expected in these cases of large all-star ensemble casts, I’m sure we’ll be devoting more articles than necessary to a movie that might turn out to be mediocre at best (see: “He’s Just Not That Into You”, “Valentine’s Day”, the upcoming “New Year’s Eve”). Just hours after Brooklyn Decker was announced to be joining the cast, Lionsgate reveals another new cast member for “What to Expect When You’re Expecting”. Oscar nominee Anna Kendrick is the latest to sign on, joining Decker, Cameron Diaz and Jennifer Lopez as expectant mothers whose pregnancy stories interweave.

In the Kirk Jones directed film, Kendrick will play Rosie, who is reunited with an old flame in the midst of a turf war between their rival food trucks (what?). Needless to say, a one night stand results in a surprise pregnancy and they set off on an “emotional and poignant journey” towards parenthood together (sigh). Decker is on board as a trophy wife carrying twins who breezes through an easy pregnancy, Diaz will be a fitness guru a la Jillian Michaels and Lopez a woman who has trouble conceiving and settles on adopting a child from another country.

After over a year of no new projects aside from finishing up her commitment to the “Twilight” series in “Breaking Dawn”, Kendrick is back with a vengeance, with a nonstop stream of projects that include cop drama “End of Watch” opposite Jake Gyllenhaal, Robin Wright’s directorial debut “The Archivist”, the animated “ParaNorman” and horror comedy “Rapturepalooza”, which is set up at Lionsgate, the studio behind “What to Expect”. She also has Jonathan Levine’s cancer dramedy “50/50″ opposite Joseph Gordon-Levitt in the can for release in September.

Anna Kendrick to be Mrs. Jake Gyllenhaal in David Ayer’s “End of Watch”

June 14, 2011 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting Leave a comment

Anna Kendrick is about to play a role she’s never played before in her young career: wife. In David Ayer’s gritty cop drama “End of Watch”, Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Pena play a pair of partner police officers, and now Variety reports Kendrick – who generally steers clear of traditional love interest roles – is in talks to play Gyllenhaal’s wife, while Natalie Martinez is in talks for the role of Pena’s wife.

Story follows “the longtime partnership of two LAPD officers as they confront marriage, love, fatherhood and the harsh realities of the Los Angeles streets”. Filming already began weeks ago and has been ongoing since April.

Ayer directed Kendrick in her music video debut last year, for LCD Soundsystem’s song “Pow Pow”. The “Twilight” series star earned an Oscar nomination in 2009 for her role opposite George Clooney in “Up in the Air” and has Jonathan Levine’s cancer dramedy “50/50″ opposite Joseph Gordon Levitt and Seth Rogen coming out this September. After over a year of signing on to no new projects, Kendrick is getting back into the swing of things, recently signing on for three – four, including “End of Watch” – new movies: Robin Wright’s directorial debut “The Archivst”, Lionsgate’s micro-budget horror comedy “Rapture-Palooza” and the animated “ParaNorman”.