Rapidly rising actress Olivia Wilde is the latest star to be cast in Andrew Niccol first directorial effort since 2005’s “Lord Of War” with the ageist sci-fi thriller formerly titled, “I’m.mortal.”
In an interesting twist, Wilde will play the mother of the film’s protagonist despite being four years younger than the actor in the actual role; none other than “The Social Network” star Justin Timberlake. How is this possible, you ask? The story is, of course, set in a world where time has become a currency with the rich achieving immortality and never aging past 25. Wilde’s appearance will be something of reunion for the two, since both previously appeared in Nick Cassavetes’ 2006 crime-drama “Alpha Dog.”
Lead Timberlake plays a rebel from the ghetto who is falsely accused of murder and is forced to go on the run with a beautiful hostage, to be played by Amanda Seyfried . “Mad Men” star Vincent Kartheiser also co-stars as Seyfried’s father in a similar predicament to the Wilde-Timberlake situation; Cillian Murphy will play a law enforcer known as a ‘timekeeper’ and Collins Pennie, his right hand man.
Wilde’s addition adds further steel to the cast and tops off what is already shaping up as the biggest 12 or so months of her career with Joseph Kosinski’s “Tron: Legacy” and Paul Haggis’ “The Next Three Days” due for imminent release. She then has the ensemble butter-carving comedy “Butter” and Jon Favreau’s comic-adaptation “Cowboys & Aliens” due on the horizon. She’s certainly come a long way since that lesbian cameo in “The O.C.”
Shooting on Niccol’s film should begin any time now with Strike Entertainment trio Eric Newman, Marc Abraham and Kristel Laiblin producing. 20th Century Fox will distribute the pic. [TheWrap]