New year, new news! (How will I introduce these news posts
come February? I’d better start thinking of something now…) Let’s kick it off
with a double bit of casting news about Vincent Cassel, everyone’s favourite
menacing Frenchman, who has boarded two European
flicks. First is the thriller, “Rien ne sert courir,” the next film from French mono-name
director Maiwenn, whose “Polisse” played Cannes to some acclaim in 2011. The
other new gig for polyglot Cassel is Italian project “The Tale of Tales,” where
he’ll be joined by Salma Hayek and directed by Matteo Garrone, the filmmaker behind “Gomorrah” and “Reality.” And by the way, the original 17th century
Italian title of the source material, is a collection of morality tales, “Lo cunto
de li cunti.” Just in case that ever, uh, comes in handy. [Variety/Variety]
Also coming in over the wires is some news about a couple of
aging action men. Bruce Willis has been cast alongside Bill Murray in the previously announced “Rock
the Kasbah.” It’s a flick in which Murray will play a music manager capering in Afghanistan, chasing the next big thing. No
word on who Willis will be, but we imagine there’s more call for Willis’
skillset than Murray’s on the mean streets of Kabul, so he should fit in just
fine (although, really, is there anywhere Bill Murray won’t enjoy himself?). [Showbiz 411]
Harrison Ford, meanwhile, has been attached to a project
that might be even older than he is: “Adaline” which first surfaced back in
2010 as the passion project of one Katherine Heigl (remember her?), who apparently
really wanted to make a movie about a woman who was supernaturally stuck in her
20s until she could find love: a sort, of ‘Benjamin Button‘ meets “Groundhog Day” kind of thing, maybe? The whole idea was bizarre and when Heigl, who was the
driving force behind it, dropped out (as she tends to do), the project looked
doomed. But no! It was resurrected last fall starring Blake
Lively and Ellen Burstyn, and then nothing more was heard until last week, when
Harrison frickin’ Ford was cast in it (oh, and now it’s called “The Age of
Adaline”). It’s now apparently set to be directed by Lee Toland Krieger, of
“The Vicious Kind” and “Celeste & Jesse Forever.” Unless this whole thing
is some very elaborate Hollywood joke about the nature of time? This seems
increasingly plausible. [The Wrap]
Some rather more fast-moving news: last week we brought you news of the new project from Rebecca Miller (“The Ballad of Jack
and Rose”—see it). The new film is “Maggie’s Plan,” a tale of Greta Gerwig
trying to make her way in New York City. Now we hear that the excellent
Julianne Moore has joined the cast, which makes it even more exciting. Meanwhile
the remake of the 1974 movie “The Gambler” is gathering pace, with the announcement of Emory Cohen, Bradley Cooper‘s son
from “The Place Beyond The Pines” for the cast. He joins Brie Larson, Mark
Wahlberg, Jessica Lange, John Goodman and Michael K. Williams. Wow. [Deadline/THR]
Meanwhile, after the infamy of “The Canyons,” Lindsay Lohan is eager to make another movie, signing up to star in and produce the low-budget psychological thriller “Inconceivable” (LOL). Production on the project is slated to begin March, and Lohan will be choosing the director herself, for the movie which is keeping plot details under wraps. We presume Paul Schrader won’t be getting a call. [The Wrap]
But, for every casting, there must be an un-casting, or
something: the Hollywood Equilibrium must be maintained. Thus comes news that Reese Witherspoon has exited “The Intern,” which we reported on
back in November.
The project has hit this kind of snag before: it was originally designed for
Tina Fey and Michael Caine. Robert De Niro took over the latter part, but with
Witherspoon gone it’s not clear if he too will move on from Nancy Meyer‘s
project. Watch this space…