Giuseppe Tornatore, Amma Asante, RZA, And Tate Taylor Line Up New Directing Gigs

null"Cinema Paradiso" and "Malena" director Giuseppe Tornatore is turning the camera toward one of the greatest cinematic composers of all time. He’ll be helming a documentary about the legendary Ennio Morricone. But this won’t just be a straight talking-head affair, as the movie will also feature a narrative piece as well that "will reconstruct key moments, anecdotes, and situations which have been essential steps of the artistic and personal path that Morricone’s life has taken." Filming will begin in August. [Deadline]

READ MORE: Trailer For Giuseppe Tornatore’s ‘The Best Offer’.

The brewing project "A United Kingdom" with David Oyelowo and Rosamund Pike now has a director. "Belle" helmer Amma Asante will film this tale that "tells the true story of Seretse Khama, a member of the royal family in the country of Bechuanaland, a former English colony and south African nation that would one day become Botswana, with Khama serving as the country’s first president. But prior to that, Khama sparked international outrage when he married a white woman in 1948. He survived a deposition attempt by his uncle, only to face opposition from South Africa, where interracial marriage was illegal, which forced Great Britain to ban him from his home country in 1951." Production will begin in October. [THR]

Paula Hawkins‘ bestseller "The Girl On The Train" is on everyone’s summer reading list, so you better get to it, because a movie version is on the way. "The Help" and "Get On Up" helmer Tate Taylor will direct the film "about a woman named Rachel, who recently became divorced and who spends her daily train commute fantasizing about the perfect couple in a house she passes only to one day see something shocking that gets her caught up in a mystery." Erin Cressida Wilson ("Secretary") is penning the script. [ComingSoon]

READ MORE: Watch: Trailer For James Brown Biopic ‘Get On Up’

Rapper Azealia Banks will lead RZA‘s next directorial effort "Coco." It won’t be too much of a stretch for banks who will play an aspiring hip-hop artist that "struggles to pursue both her music career and fulfill her parents’ dream of finishing college after a record deal goes awry. When she returns to school, Coco discovers the vivid world of slam poetry where she finds her true voice and an unlikely love." Common, Jill Scott, Lucien Laviscount, Lorraine Toussaint and Hana Mae Lee also star. [Variety]