Moviefone Editorial

Tag: casting

  • Jessica Chastain, Andrew Garfield to Star in Biopic ‘The Eyes of Tammy Faye’

    Jessica Chastain, Andrew Garfield to Star in Biopic ‘The Eyes of Tammy Faye’

    Jessica Chastain; Andrew Garfield
    STX Films; A24

    The upcoming Fox Searchlight biopic “The Eyes of Tammy Faye” has landed Jessica Chastain and Andrew Garfield as its stars.

    The two actors will play the real-life televangelists who the story centers on, Tammy Faye and Jim Bakker, Variety reports. The film is based on Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato‘s 2000 documentary of the same name, which looked at the pair’s rise and fall. Abe Sylvia has written the script, and Michael Showalter (“The Big Sick”) will direct.

    The Bakkers became popular in the ’70s and ’80s, to the point that they hosted multiple TV shows, founded a TV network, and even built an theme park. They later became embroiled in scandal, though, and neither their empire nor their marriage survived. The upcoming film is one of many takes on their story, following the likes of the aforementioned documentary, multiple musicals, a play, and more.

    Both Chastain and Garfield are well-known actors with past Academy Award nominations to their respective names. Chastain, a two-time nominee, has recently starred in “Molly’s Game” and “Woman Walks Ahead.” Meanwhile, Garfield’s recent films include “Under the Silver Lake” and “Breathe.”

    Chastain is set to produce “The Eyes of Tammy Faye” alongside her Freckle Films colleague Kelly Carmichael and MWM Studios’ Gigi Pritzker and Rachel Shane. Jordana Mollick will executive produce.

    [via: Variety]

    This article has been updated.

  • Jon Stewart’s ‘Irresistible’ Adds Natasha Lyonne

    Jon Stewart’s ‘Irresistible’ Adds Natasha Lyonne

    Natasha Lyonne in Show Dogs
    Global Road Entertainment

    And so grows the cast of Jon Stewart’s upcoming political comedy “Irresistible.” Natasha Lyonne has boarded the project written by the former “Daily Show” host, Variety reports. Her co-stars include Steve Carell, Rose Byrne, Topher Grace, Mackenzie Davis, and Chris Cooper.

    So far, details about Lyonne’s character haven’t been revealed. What we do know is that the film follows a political consultant (Carell) as he tries to get a retired ex-Marine colonel (Cooper) elected mayor of a small Wisconsin town. Stewart both wrote the script and is directing the film.

    Lyonne most recently starred in the films “Show Dogs” and “A Futile and Stupid Gesture.” Next up will be the drama “Honey Boy.” The actress also co-created and had the lead role in the Netflix series “Russian Doll.”

    “Irresistible” will be produced by Stewart and Plan B Entertainment. Focus Features and Universal Pictures International are distributing. A release date has not been announced.

    [via: Variety]

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  • Liam Neeson to Star in Action Thriller ‘The Minuteman’

    Liam Neeson to Star in Action Thriller ‘The Minuteman’

    Liam Neeson in Cold Pursuit
    Lionsgate

    The action roles keep coming for Liam Neeson. The actor is set to star in “The Minuteman,” an upcoming action thriller helmed by director Robert Lorenz, Deadline reports.

    Neeson will again play a protector. In what is described as a “fast-paced story,” a Vietnam vet has to keep a young boy safe from a cartel. The script was written by Lorenz, Chris Charles, and Danny Kravitz.

    Executive producer Jonathan Deckter pointed out in a statement how “fans love to see Liam play the highly skilled protector.” Neeson has indeed portrayed such a character on multiple occasions, including in 2008’s “Taken” and its two sequels. More recently, the actor starred in “Cold Pursuit” and “Widows.”

    Production on “The Minuteman” will take place in New Mexico and Ohio, beginning in September. Tai Duncan and Mark Williams of Zero Gravity Management will produce, as will Warren Goz and Eric Gold of Sculptor Media. Executive producers are Deckter and Nicholas Chartier of Voltage Pictures and James Masciello of Raven Capital Management.

    [via: Deadline]

  • Anthony Anderson to Star in Rom-Com ‘Football or Me’

    Anthony Anderson to Star in Rom-Com ‘Football or Me’

    Anthony Anderson in Black-ish
    ABC

    It’s time for some sports mania for “Black-ish” star Anthony Anderson.

    The actor is set to star in an upcoming rom-com called “Football or Me,” Variety reports. He’ll play Peter, a football fan so obsessed with the game that it interferes with his career and his marriage. The story is inspired by another comedy, “El Fútbol o Yo,” from Argentinian director Marcos Carnevale. He co-wrote the script with the movie’s star, Adrián Suar.

    Anderson has been very active in TV in recent years, not only starring in “Black-ish” but executive producing the series and its spinoff “Grown-ish.” Some of his many film credits include roles in the upcoming Netflix drama “Beats,” “Small Town Crime,” and “Barbershop: The Next Cut.” He also recently voiced characters in “Ferdinand” and “The Star.”

    AGC Studios is producing and financing “Football or Me,” and the studio has tapped Robb Chavis to pen the screenplay. He, like Anderson, has worked on “Black-ish.” The film’s executive producers include AGC’s Stuart Ford, Greg Shapiro, and Glendon Palmer. Producers are Tracey Bing and Benedict Carver of Badabing Pictures as well as E. Brian Dobbins and Jose Levy.

    [via: Variety]

  • Amandla Stenberg Joins Netflix Musical Drama Series ‘The Eddy’

    Amandla Stenberg Joins Netflix Musical Drama Series ‘The Eddy’

    Amandla Stenberg in The Hate U Give
    20th Century Fox

    Netflix’s upcoming musical drama series “The Eddy” will mark Amandla Stenberg‘s biggest TV role to date. The “Hate U Give” actress has joined the project in a lead role, Deadline reports. She’ll co-star with Andre Holland in a series that he co-executive produces.

    The series takes place in Paris and centers on the city, a club, and the club’s owner and house band. Stenberg’s character is Julie, the daughter of Holland’s Elliott. She’ll show up in Paris and force him to face his past.

    Stenberg first rose to prominence as Rue in The Hunger Games series. She most recently starred in “Where Hands Touch” and “The Hate U Give.” On the TV front, she has had roles in “Mr. Robinson” and “Sleepy Hollow.” Although this will be her first musical series, she plays the violin and sings, as Deadline reports.

    Production on “The Eddy” is set to kick off this spring, and several acclaimed directors will helm episodes. The list includes Damien Chazelle, Jack Thorne, Alan Poul, and Houda Benyamina. Chazelle, Thorne, and Poul are all executive producing, as are Glen Ballard and Atlantique Productions’ Jimmy Dsmarais and Olivier Bibas.

    [via: Deadline]

  • ‘Those Who Wish Me Dead’ Cast Adds Jon Bernthal and More

    ‘Those Who Wish Me Dead’ Cast Adds Jon Bernthal and More

    Jon Bernthal in The Punisher
    Netflix

    More casting news for the upcoming thriller “Those Who Wish Me Dead” has come.

    Following news Monday that Nicholas Hoult and Tyler Perry had joined Angelina Jolie in the Taylor Sheridan film, more castings have reportedly been confirmed. Jon Bernthal, Aidan Gillen, and Medina Senghore will co-star in the film, per Deadline. Previously, Collider had reported that Bernthal was in talks to play the ex of Jolie’s character, Hannah Faber, a woman who occupies a fire lookout tower.

    The film is based on Michael Koryta’s 2014 novel of the same name. Its a thriller that centers on a 14-year-old boy (Finn Little) who witnesses a terrible murder. He’s given a new identity and put in a wilderness skills program for troubled teens to keep him safe, but the killers, the deadly Blackwell Brothers, are determined to hunt him down. Sheridan wrote the script and will direct.

    “Those Who Wish Me Dead” comes from BRON Studios and Film Rites, with producers Aaron L. Gilbert  of BRON and Garrett Basch and Steve Zaillian of Film Rites. Creative Wealth Media’s Jason Cloth is on board to executive produce.

    [via: Deadline]

  • ‘Maze Runner’ Actor Dexter Darden Joins ‘Son of the South’ as John Lewis

    ‘Maze Runner’ Actor Dexter Darden Joins ‘Son of the South’ as John Lewis

    Dexter Darden in The Maze Runner
    20th Century Fox

    The upcoming biopic “Son of the South” has found its John Lewis. “The Maze Runner” actor Dexter Darden is set to play the real-life civil rights leader and now-congressman, Deadline reports.

    Barry Alexander Brown is directing the film, and he also penned the script. It is based on “The Wrong Side of Murder Creek,” a memoir by Bob Zellner, written with Constance Curry, about joining the civil rights movement. As the grandson of a Klansman, Zellner was an unlikely ally, but he was inspired by Lewis and other civil rights activists.

    Darden will appear in the film alongside Lucas Till (Zellner), Lucy Hale, and Cedric the Entertainer, among others. He most recently appeared in “Maze Runner: The Death Cure,” having played Frypan in each of the three films. Darden was also in 2018’s “Burden.”

    “Son of the South” will be produced by Lucidity Entertainment’s Colin Bates, River Bend Pictures’ Stan Erdreich, and Eve Pomerance, Bill Black, and David Kang. Spike Lee is set to executive produce alongside Brown.

    [via: Deadline]

  • Olivia Munn to Star in ‘Love, Wedding, Repeat’ and ‘The Gateway’

    Olivia Munn to Star in ‘Love, Wedding, Repeat’ and ‘The Gateway’

    Olivia Munn in The Rook
    Starz

    There are not one but two new movies in the pipeline for Olivia Munn. The actress has been cast in the upcoming rom-com “Love, Wedding, Repeat” as well as the drama “The Gateway,” Deadline reports. She’s set to be the female lead in both.

    “Love, Wedding, Repeat” follows a man named Jack who has an unexpected reunion with an ex, Dina (Munn), while trying to make sure his sister has the wedding of her dreams. A table seating change will apparently drastically alter destiny, to hilarious and disastrous outcomes. The rom-com comes from director Dean Craig.

    “The Gateway,” on the other hand, follows a social worker named Parker Jode, who works with a girl named Ashley and her mother, Dhalia (Munn), while Ashley’s father is in prison. When the dad gets out early, he’ll disrupt all of their lives. The film will be directed by Michele Civetta, with Metalwork Pictures’ Andrew Levitas producing alongside Stephen Israel.

    Munn’s most recent film role was in “The Predator” and she also appears in the upcoming comedy “Dick Move.” On the TV front, Munn stars in the Starz series “The Rook,” which is due out this summer.

    [via: Deadline]

  • Mark Wahlberg, Connie Britton Team up for ‘Good Joe Bell’

    Mark Wahlberg, Connie Britton Team up for ‘Good Joe Bell’

    Mark Wahlberg and Connie Britton side-by-side
    Paramount Pictures; Bravo

    The upcoming film “Good Joe Bell” has some not just good but excellent actors taking on lead roles.

    The drama from director Reinaldo Marcus Green will star the likes of two-time Academy Award nominee  Mark Wahlberg and two-time Golden Globe nominee Connie Britton, Variety reports. They’re joined by young actor Reid Miller in a film written by Diana Ossana and Larry McMurtry, the Academy Award-winning screenwriters of “Brokeback Mountain.”

    “Good Joe Bell” is based on a heartbreaking true story. It centers on Joe (Wahlberg), an Oregon father who embarked on a cross-country walk in honor of his son Jadin (Miller), who died by suicide in 2013. Joe’s goal was to bring awareness to the damaging effects bullying can have.

    Both Wahlberg and Britton are veteran actors. Wahlberg most recently starred in the film “Instant Family” and his next film, “Wonderland,” is due out in 2019. Meanwhile, Britton recently added the Bravo TV series “Dirty John” to her resume, along with the film “The Mustang.” Miller, on the other hand, is a relative newcomer. He recently starred in the Complex Networks comedy series “Play by Play.”

    Wahlberg is one of the “Good Joe Bell” producers, alongside Stephen Levinson, Stay Gold’s Daniela Taplin Lundberg, Vision Chaos’ Eva Maria Daniels, Parliament of Owls’ Cary Fukunaga, Argent Pictures’ Ryan Ahrens, and Nine Stories’ River Marker and Jake Gyllenhal. Ossana and McMurtry will serve as executive producers, as will Argent Pictures’ Jill Ahrens, Ben Renzo, Tony Parker, Derick Brooks, Michael Finley, and Drew Brees. Hercules and Rhea Films’ Paris Kassidokostas-Latsis, Terry Douglas, and Jean-Luc De Fanti are also executive producing.

    The film is slated to kick off production on April 15 in Utah.

    [via: Variety]

  • Glenn Close to Star in ‘Hillbilly Elegy’ with Amy Adams

    Glenn Close to Star in ‘Hillbilly Elegy’ with Amy Adams

    Glenn Close in The Wife
    Sony Pictures Classic

    The upcoming Ron Howard-directed film “Hillbilly Elegy” has added another acclaimed actress.

    News broke last week that Amy Adams had joined the project, and now Glenn Close is on board, too, Variety reports. The two women have 13 Academy Award nominations between them, and Close is responsible for seven of them. The “Wife” star will play the grandmother in the film’s focal family.

    The story is based on J. D. Vance’s 2016 book, “Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis.” Vanessa Taylor (“Shape of Water”) adapted the script, and it follows three generations of Vance’s family. In spite of their upward mobility and their achievement of certain markers of success, they can’t shake struggles with alcoholism, abuse, poverty, and trauma.

    The combination of Close, Adams, and Oscar-winner Howard seems likely to be a great one, and there are still more roles left to be cast. Close comes to the film having just won a Golden Globe and a SAG Award for her role in “The Wife.” In recent years, she has starred in “Father Figures” and “Crooked Houses,” among others, not to mention been active on the stage.

    “Hillbilly Elegy” is being executive produced by Vance and Julie Oh. Howard, Brian Glazer, and Karen Lunder are producing via Imagine Entertainment.

    [via: Variety]