David Oyelowo has joined the cast of the upcoming “The Help” starring Emma Stone, Viola Davis and Bryce Dallas Howard.
If the name sounds familiar, you most likely remember that the actor was cast earlier this year in the role of Martin Luther King Jr. in Lee Daniels’ gestating civil rights drama “Selma.” But with Daniels looking less and less excited about the project, and eyeing “The Butler” instead, it remains to be seen if that film will ever get in front of cameras.
“The Help” is another civil rights era drama, though on a much smaller scale. Based on Kathryn Stockett’s bestselling novel, about a recent college graduate in the 1960s who decides to write a book highlighting the plight of African-American domestic help in Mississippi. Sometime actor Tate Taylor, who previously directed the comedy “Pretty Ugly People,” will write and direct, and Chris Columbus is producing through his 1492 banner.
“The Help” is currently filming and is slated for release next year. [Variety]
