1.) While he’s been off focusing on his band 30 Seconds to Mars in recent years, I’ve always liked Jared Leto‘s acting and have been waiting for him to make his return to the big screen. Well now, Leto (Fight Club, Requiem for a Dream) has been cast alongside a skinny Matthew McConaughey in The Dallas Buyer’s Club. The film will mark Leto’s first on-screen role since 2009’s Mr. Nobody, which I don’t believe was ever actually released in the U.S. The move comes a few days after Jennifer Garner was cast as the female lead, replacing the previously attached Hilary Swank.
The film tells the true story of Ron Woodruff (McConaughey), who contracted AIDS in 1986 and spent the next six years smuggling drugs into the U.S. to help himself and fellow patients. Leto will play one such patient, a cross-dresser named Rayon who producers reportedly view as a key role. Gael Garcia Bernal is also on board for The Young Victoria helmer Jean-Marc Vallee. [Deadline]
2.) Now on to today’s Star Wars: Episode VII rumor, with Celebuzz adding Colin Trevorrow to yesterday’s list of potential directors. Who is Colin Trevorrow, you ask? Well, he’s the director of the indie time-travel comedy Safety Not Guaranteed. A source cites George Lucas as one of the film’s many fans, and says they actually met a few months ago to discuss Episode VII.
Sure, Trevorrow isn’t as big a name as the rest of the guys on the shortlist that included Spielberg, Whedon, Aronofsky and others, but he’s precisely the type of guy I’ve expected to get the job since the deal was announced. I’ve always seen them gravitating toward an indie guy with little to no experience in Hollywood blockbusters, similar to the move The Amazing Spider-Man made with Marc Webb.
3.) Dominic Cooper (Captain America: The First Avenger) is in talks to join Imogen Poots and and Aaron Paul in DreamWorks’ Need for Speed. Paul stars as an underground racecar driver, framed and sent to prison when his best friend is murdered during a race. Now, he’s out and looking for revenge. Cooper would play the other lead, an ex-NASCAR driver who uses his connections to create a business rebuilding and modifying supercars. [Variety]
4.) Cooper is also set to play 007 creator Ian Fleming in a biopic, simply called Fleming. Duncan Jones (Moon, Source Code) is attached to direct the four-part mini-series about the late James Bond author, who died in 1964. It seems the project has been put on the fast track with producers eager to capitalize on the buzz created by Skyfall. But, uh, won’t the buzz die down by the time this thing hits the air? Or maybe it will play in two years when the next Bond film is set to arrive in theaters? [The Sun]
5.) And speaking of biopics, here’s the first look at Tom Hanks as Walt Disney in Saving Mr. Banks. The film tells the story of Disney’s 14-year struggle to convince author P.L. Travers to turn over the rights to Mary Poppins. Directed by John Lee Hancock (The Blind Side), the is scheduled for a December 2013 release. [@imagineeringdis, via slashfilm]
