While it isn’t quite the name many fans have been hoping for (*cough* Robert Rodriguez *cough*), 20th Century Fox has finally found their director for their Deadpool spinoff. Deadline reports Tim Miller, who has done visual effects work on everything from X-Men to Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, will make his feature directorial debut on the project. Ryan Reynolds is expected to reprise his role from X-Men Origins: Wolverine as the smart-mouthed mercenary who participates in military experiments that give him mutant healing power but leave him severely scarred.
Hugo Weaving will re-team with The Wachowskis on the movie adaptation of David Mitchell’s Cloud Atlas, according to Filmonic. The only previously confirmed acting attachment is Halle Berry. IMDb also lists Tom Hanks and James McAvoy as part of the cast, but there is speculation that Weaving could act as a replacement for Hanks. The book was has often been called “unfilmable” (I’ll just call it “ambitious”) as it presents six narratives, spanning a wide range of genres. The project will carry a production budget of around $80-100 million and Tom Tykwer (Run Lola Run) will co-direct some segments.
Ok, so remember how Liam Neeson replaced Mel Gibson in the tattoo artist cameo role in The Hangover Part II after some of the cast and crew were sour to the thought of working with Gibson? Well, now it seems Nick Cassavetes will fill the role. Variety reports the The Notebook director was called in for reshoots of the scene because Neeson was in London filming Wrath of the Titans. Excuse me if I’m missing the point here, but isn’t having a widely recognizable star turn up unexpectedly the entire point of a cameo? How many people are going to recognize Nick Cassavetes? Look, I want this thing to be good. But this news, coupled with the first full trailer that looks like a complete retread of the original, is giving me some serious doubts. Reshoots this close to a film’s opening (May 26) are never a good sign.
Variety reports Tobey Maguire will reteam with his The Ice Storm and Ride with the Devil helmer Ang Lee in Life of Pi. Maguire will play a writer who interviews the older version of Pi (Slumdog Millionaire‘s Irrfan Khan) about his life-changing experience of being adrift in a lifeboat with a Bengal tiger. The 3D picture is set for a December 14, 2012 release.
Eastern Promises and Dirty Pretty Things screenwriter Steven Knight is set to make his directorial debut with Hummingbird. Knight’s script centers on a damaged ex-Special forces soldier who finds himself trapped in the criminal underworld and assumes another man’s identity to exact revenge. Deadline reports casting is now underway, with production expected to begin this fall.
Cloverfield and Let Me In helmer Matt Reeves will head a new feature based on the Ray Nelson short story 8 O’Clock in the Morning, which centers on a man who realizes one morning that we are surrounded by aliens that control society. The source material was previously adapted for the 1988 John Carpenter film They Live, but Deadline notes this film is not considered a remake — even though that’s exactly what it is. Reeves wants the film to be a more serious, paranoia-driven adaptation, aiming for a Roman Polanski-type feel. That sounds all fine and dandy, but good luck finding a cooler lead than “Rowdy” Roddy Piper. On the bright side, studios are almost running out of classic Carpenter films to remake.
Updating a previous story, Jessica Biel has reportedly been offered one of the two lead female roles in Sony’s Total Recall remake. Variety was unclear if it was the femme fatale role portrayed by Sharon Stone in the 1990 original, or the protagonist rebel originally portrayed by Rachel Ticotin. The project previously attached Colin Farrell in the Schwarzenegger role and Bryan Cranston as the villian.
Speaking of Schwarzenegger, Heat Vision reports his big-screen return could come in the form of the crime thriller The Last Stand from director Jee-Woon Kim (I Saw the Devil). He’d play a bordertown sheriff attempting to stop a cartel leader from crossing the Mexican border.
And finally, signs point to Ben Affleck joining Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire and Carey Mulligan in director Baz Luhrmann’s 3D adaptation of The Great Gatsby. Affleck is being targeted for the role of Tom Buchanan, the husband of Daisy (Mulligan), which was played by Bruce Dern in the 1974 version of the film. Affleck will attempt to fit the role into his schedule as he preps his next project as director of Argo, a film about the 1979 Iran hostage crisis.
