Woody Harrelson Wants To Run Magic Heists In Now You See Me

Rumor has it that Woody Harrelson could be an Oscar nominee once again this year for his turn in Rampart, playing a corrupt LAPD officer in a new drama from his The Messenger director Oren Moverman. And Harrelson, being no fool, is cashing in that kind of good buzz, which seems to only get stronger the older he gets. Variety reports that Harrelson is in negotiations to join Now You See Me, the positively insane-sounding magician heist drama from The Incredible Hulk and Clash of the Titans director Louis Leterrier.

Ignore the guys's spotty credits for a moment and consider the cast he's already assembled-- Mark Ruffalo, Jesse Eisenberg, Isla Fisher, Morgan Freeman and Melanie Laurent are all already set for roles. From the looks of it Harrelson would be playing the lead, the magician-on-the-lam Merritt Osbourne, who flees to Vegas and "joins the Four Horsemen," a group of illusionists who pull off bank heists during their performances. If that wasn't enough of a twist for you, they then "shower the profits on their audiences"-- whether or not that's literal, I'm not sure.

For all his laid-back charm, Harrelson possesses an intensity that makes you believe he could be the head of an international crime ring, leading through persuasion but also the sense that he could crack your skull any moment. In other words, he seems perfect for the role. Sure, he also seems perfect for his next high profile role, playing Haymitch in The Hunge

Woody Harrelson Wants To Run Magic Heists In Now You See Me

Rumor has it that Woody Harrelson could be an Oscar nominee once again this year for his turn in Rampart, playing a corrupt LAPD officer in a new drama from his The Messenger director Oren Moverman. And Harrelson, being no fool, is cashing in that kind of good buzz, which seems to only get stronger the older he gets. Variety reports that Harrelson is in negotiations to join Now You See Me, the positively insane-sounding magician heist drama from The Incredible Hulk and Clash of the Titans director Louis Leterrier.

Ignore the guys's spotty credits for a moment and consider the cast he's already assembled-- Mark Ruffalo, Jesse Eisenberg, Isla Fisher, Morgan Freeman and Melanie Laurent are all already set for roles. From the looks of it Harrelson would be playing the lead, the magician-on-the-lam Merritt Osbourne, who flees to Vegas and "joins the Four Horsemen," a group of illusionists who pull off bank heists during their performances. If that wasn't enough of a twist for you, they then "shower the profits on their audiences"-- whether or not that's literal, I'm not sure.

For all his laid-back charm, Harrelson possesses an intensity that makes you believe he could be the head of an international crime ring, leading through persuasion but also the sense that he could crack your skull any moment. In other words, he seems perfect for the role. Sure, he also seems perfect for his next high profile role, playing Haymitch in The Hunge

Steve Carell Attached To Star In Moneyball Director's Next Project

Prepare to hear the name "Bennett Miller" at least once a week for the rest of the year. Thanks to the critical and box office success of Moneyball, Miller has established himself as an early, strong contender for this year's Oscar race. But the filmmaker isn't just bathing in the glow of victory; he's already in pre-production for his next project and a report suggests that he has found his new leading man.

Steve Carell is now attached to star in Foxcatcher, according to Variety. The film is based on the true story of John du Pont, the heir to the duPont chemical company, who in 1996 shot and killed Olympic wrestler David Schultz on his private estate. Following the shooting, du Pont locked himself in his estate and spent two days negotiating with police. The name of the project is derived from Team Foxcatcher, duPont's wrestling training facility. Miller has been developing the project for the past four years, with E. Max Frye and Dan Futterman writing the script (the pair also wrote the screenplay for Miller's Capote). Production on the film is scheduled to begin in March.

Now that Carell's tenure on The Office is complete, is next few years are going to be formative in the future of his career. He's attached to comedies like Seeking A Friend At The End Of The World, Great Hope Springs and Burt Wonderstone, but this project should be perfect for stretching his dramatic muscle. After seeing what Miller was able to do with Jonah Hill in Moneyball, this could be fantastic.

Steve Carell Attached To Star In Moneyball Director's Next Project

Prepare to hear the name "Bennett Miller" at least once a week for the rest of the year. Thanks to the critical and box office success of Moneyball, Miller has established himself as an early, strong contender for this year's Oscar race. But the filmmaker isn't just bathing in the glow of victory; he's already in pre-production for his next project and a report suggests that he has found his new leading man.

Steve Carell is now attached to star in Foxcatcher, according to Variety. The film is based on the true story of John du Pont, the heir to the duPont chemical company, who in 1996 shot and killed Olympic wrestler David Schultz on his private estate. Following the shooting, du Pont locked himself in his estate and spent two days negotiating with police. The name of the project is derived from Team Foxcatcher, duPont's wrestling training facility. Miller has been developing the project for the past four years, with E. Max Frye and Dan Futterman writing the script (the pair also wrote the screenplay for Miller's Capote). Production on the film is scheduled to begin in March.

Now that Carell's tenure on The Office is complete, is next few years are going to be formative in the future of his career. He's attached to comedies like Seeking A Friend At The End Of The World, Great Hope Springs and Burt Wonderstone, but this project should be perfect for stretching his dramatic muscle. After seeing what Miller was able to do with Jonah Hill in Moneyball, this could be fantastic.

Ellen Page Recruited For The East With Sundance Fave Brit Marling

Now that Ellen Page is wrapping up her contributions to Woody Allen’s latest, The Bop Decameron, she’s free to start lining up future projects, and Variety reports that she might be leaning toward The East, a thriller penned by Sound of My Voice collaborators Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij.

As we reported earlier, Marling would star as a woman hired by a private contracting firm to infiltrate The East, a group the trade is describing as “a mysterious anarchist organization.” True Blood star Alexander Skarsgard would play the East’s leader, while Page would be Izzy, his former lover who starts to grow jealous at the attention paid to new “recruit,” Marling. Like Crazy star Felicity Jones originally was set to play Izzy, but her press commitments to that film prevented her from sticking with the project.

Yes, if you saw the Sundance hit Sound, you’ll notice loose comparisons between the stories. And Fox Searchlight is on the hook to distribute both Sound and East, so they are in the Marling-Batmanglij business. Page is also a Searchlight darling, having starred in the studio’s Oscar smash Juno, as well as Drew Barrymore’s directorial debut, Whip It!

It’s odd to consider 24-year-old Page the “veteran” who brings a bankable name to a project. But given her involvement in Christopher Nolan’s Inception and Juno, she’s certainly a marketable star and her name could lure ticket buyers. Marling, meanwhile, will appear next in Nicholas Jarecki’s Arbitage opposite Richard Gere and Susan Sarandon, then completes filming on Robert Redford’s The Company You Keep with Shia LaBeouf, Stanley Tucci and Nick Nolte.

Ellen Page Recruited For The East With Sundance Fave Brit Marling

Now that Ellen Page is wrapping up her contributions to Woody Allen’s latest, The Bop Decameron, she’s free to start lining up future projects, and Variety reports that she might be leaning toward The East, a thriller penned by Sound of My Voice collaborators Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij.

As we reported earlier, Marling would star as a woman hired by a private contracting firm to infiltrate The East, a group the trade is describing as “a mysterious anarchist organization.” True Blood star Alexander Skarsgard would play the East’s leader, while Page would be Izzy, his former lover who starts to grow jealous at the attention paid to new “recruit,” Marling. Like Crazy star Felicity Jones originally was set to play Izzy, but her press commitments to that film prevented her from sticking with the project.

Yes, if you saw the Sundance hit Sound, you’ll notice loose comparisons between the stories. And Fox Searchlight is on the hook to distribute both Sound and East, so they are in the Marling-Batmanglij business. Page is also a Searchlight darling, having starred in the studio’s Oscar smash Juno, as well as Drew Barrymore’s directorial debut, Whip It!

It’s odd to consider 24-year-old Page the “veteran” who brings a bankable name to a project. But given her involvement in Christopher Nolan’s Inception and Juno, she’s certainly a marketable star and her name could lure ticket buyers. Marling, meanwhile, will appear next in Nicholas Jarecki’s Arbitage opposite Richard Gere and Susan Sarandon, then completes filming on Robert Redford’s The Company You Keep with Shia LaBeouf, Stanley Tucci and Nick Nolte.

Ben Affleck's Argo Set For September 14 Release Next Year

A year ago Ben Affleck released a movie in the middle of September, and even though it was a fairly small-scale and predictable bank robber thriller, it made a ton of money, got great reviews, and by most accounts came very close to getting a Best Picture nomination. Now Affleck is making another movie for Warner Bros., Argo, and the studio is apparently planning the same strategy that worked so well for The Town the first time around. According to Deadline, the studio has scheduled a release date of September 14, 2012 for the movie, which is shooting now.

That slot put the movie smack dab in the middle of the Toronto International Film Festival, where it seems likely to appear, and also at the start of Oscar season. The great thing about Argo is that it has everything it needs to be even more interesting than The Town. It's an adaptation of this Wired article, about the CIA effort to rescue four hostages held in Iran in 1979. They pulled off the rescue by sending in a team of agents pretending to be a movie crew filming a fake movie called Argo, and the ruse was so elaborate they even doctored up fake movie posters. Not only is the story fascinating, but it stars all kinds of actors you'll watch do just about anything-- the cast includes Bryan Cranston, John Goodman, Alan Arkin, tate Donovan, and, oh, Affleck himself.

So anyway, around this time next year we'll finally get a look at what Affleck and his crew are up to in the desert-- and if the release date is any indication of quality, we've got plenty to look forward to.

Ben Affleck's Argo Set For September 14 Release Next Year

A year ago Ben Affleck released a movie in the middle of September, and even though it was a fairly small-scale and predictable bank robber thriller, it made a ton of money, got great reviews, and by most accounts came very close to getting a Best Picture nomination. Now Affleck is making another movie for Warner Bros., Argo, and the studio is apparently planning the same strategy that worked so well for The Town the first time around. According to Deadline, the studio has scheduled a release date of September 14, 2012 for the movie, which is shooting now.

That slot put the movie smack dab in the middle of the Toronto International Film Festival, where it seems likely to appear, and also at the start of Oscar season. The great thing about Argo is that it has everything it needs to be even more interesting than The Town. It's an adaptation of this Wired article, about the CIA effort to rescue four hostages held in Iran in 1979. They pulled off the rescue by sending in a team of agents pretending to be a movie crew filming a fake movie called Argo, and the ruse was so elaborate they even doctored up fake movie posters. Not only is the story fascinating, but it stars all kinds of actors you'll watch do just about anything-- the cast includes Bryan Cranston, John Goodman, Alan Arkin, tate Donovan, and, oh, Affleck himself.

So anyway, around this time next year we'll finally get a look at what Affleck and his crew are up to in the desert-- and if the release date is any indication of quality, we've got plenty to look forward to.

Tom Everett Scott Playing Marisa Tomei's Husband In Parenting Comedy Us & Them

To us, he’ll always be Guy “Shades” Patterson, the improvising drummer who took The Wonders to the next level in Tom Hanks’ wonderful That Thing You Do!. But we recognize that Tom Everett Scott has worked steadily since that winning 1996 musical comedy, and he’s adding another high-profile acting gig to his resume.

Scott will star as Marisa Tomei’s husband in the upcoming Us & Them, a comedy from 20th Century Fox and Walden Media that The Hollywood Reporter says will tackle “old-school versus new-school parenting.” Tomei and Scott represent the new-school parents, while they trade notes, Bette Midler and Billy Crystal (who produces) are stepping in for the old-school style of discipline. The plot finds grandparents clashing with their new-age daughter when they are asked to babysit their grandchild.

Lisa Addario and Joe Syracuse worked on the original screenplay for Us, though it since has been polished by Oscar-nominated screenwriters Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel. Their credited work on Ron Howard’s underrated Parenthood automatically qualifies them as a great team for a project such as this, though I’m also encouraged by the personal touches they managed to inject into A League of Their Own and the City Slickers films. It also shows that they know how to write for Crystal. Both he and Midler, who dominated mainstream comedies in the 80s and 90s, have been off screen for too long, and Us sounds like the ideal “return” vehicle for their talents.

Us & Them reportedly begins shooting in Atlanta this fall, with The Game Plan director Andy Fickman at the helm.

Tom Everett Scott Playing Marisa Tomei's Husband In Parenting Comedy Us & Them

To us, he’ll always be Guy “Shades” Patterson, the improvising drummer who took The Wonders to the next level in Tom Hanks’ wonderful That Thing You Do!. But we recognize that Tom Everett Scott has worked steadily since that winning 1996 musical comedy, and he’s adding another high-profile acting gig to his resume.

Scott will star as Marisa Tomei’s husband in the upcoming Us & Them, a comedy from 20th Century Fox and Walden Media that The Hollywood Reporter says will tackle “old-school versus new-school parenting.” Tomei and Scott represent the new-school parents, while they trade notes, Bette Midler and Billy Crystal (who produces) are stepping in for the old-school style of discipline. The plot finds grandparents clashing with their new-age daughter when they are asked to babysit their grandchild.

Lisa Addario and Joe Syracuse worked on the original screenplay for Us, though it since has been polished by Oscar-nominated screenwriters Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel. Their credited work on Ron Howard’s underrated Parenthood automatically qualifies them as a great team for a project such as this, though I’m also encouraged by the personal touches they managed to inject into A League of Their Own and the City Slickers films. It also shows that they know how to write for Crystal. Both he and Midler, who dominated mainstream comedies in the 80s and 90s, have been off screen for too long, and Us sounds like the ideal “return” vehicle for their talents.

Us & Them reportedly begins shooting in Atlanta this fall, with The Game Plan director Andy Fickman at the helm.