'Snow White and the Hunstman' Lead Offered to Johnny Depp« FirstShowing.net

In apress releasetoday, Universal announced release dates for many of their forthcoming tentpole films including a December 21st, 2012 release for the fairytale adaptationSnow White and the Huntsman. While we've heard names likeCharlize Theron,Angelina JolieandTom Hardytossed around for possible roles in the film, it's a slow news day today, which means an unlikely casting scoop has made its way online.The Wrapis now reportingAlice in Wonderlandproducer Joe Roth is looking to work with his Mad Hatter, actorJohnny Depp, yet again. An offer is apparently out to the actor for the lead role of the huntsman.

While the connection between Depp and Roth certainly helps the possibility, we haven't forgotten just how damn busy Depp is and just howmanyprojectshe already has on his future slate. As we all know, offers are handed out to actors all the time, and they're just as quickly turned down. This is by no means a done deal, and personally I find it wholly unlikely. Aside from Depp's demanding future, I'm not sure the actor, who carefully selects a wide variety of roles, would be so eager to take on another alternate telling of a Disney inspired tale. It just seems too obvious of a role for him even though the role is said to be quite meaty with plenty of substantial drama.

In addition, The Wrap points out that since Universal is looking to start production in January, it would be Depp's obligations to projects he has already finished shooting that may keep him wrapped up.The Touristopens in December,Rangoin March,Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tidesin May, and the indieThe Rum Diaryis supposed to hit sometime in 2011 as well. The publicity around the world for all of these films would keep anybody too busy to shoot a film at the beginning of the year, and that doesn't even include the almostunfathomablenumberof projects the actor is said to have in development. While this is a slight possibility, I wouldn't hold your breath for very long.Would you want Johnny Depp inSnow White& the Huntsman?

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Roland Emmerich About to Start Shooting a Secret Sci-Fi Project« FirstShowing.net

I guess alien invasion sci-fi movies reallyareall the rage right now. Though he's been working on his period dramaAnonymous, explosive German filmmakerRoland Emmerichhas apparently been secretly working on another small project.Heat Visionreports that Emmerich is already preparing to shoot a film calledThe Zone, another"found footage"sci-fi film, likeCloverfield, that revolves around an alien invasion. No other plot details are known, but Emmerich will cast improv-based unknown actors and work with a$5 millionbudget. Whoa! Give or takeAnonymous, he hasn't worked with a budget less than $100 million since 1994!

For those who need something to grasp onto regardingThe Zone, apparently two of the leads have just been cast (or so they say). We don't actually know the actors' names yet, but here are the character breakdowns: one is a"haggard journalistin his 40s or 50s"and the other is a"black man in his early to mid 20's, thecameraman."I already have a feeling this is going to be a cheesy Roland Emmerich version ofCloverfieldandMonstersmixed, which may or may not be cool to see. What I guess I mean is that the problems with his movies mostly lie in the script, and it might be cool to see him tackle"found footage"style sci-fi action story wrapped around an epic alien invasion. Come on, this is the guy who brought usIndependence Day!

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Anderson& Baumbach Producing Peter Bogdanovich's Next Film« FirstShowing.net

The truly original and eccentric filmmakersNoah Baumbach(right) andWes Anderson(middle) have previously collaborated with stupendous results. Baumbach scripted Anderson'sThe Life Aquatic with Steve ZissouandFantastic Mr. Foxand their styles couldn't have meshed any better. Now the two are teaming up again, but this time as producers. In a new interview with theNational Post(viaThe Playlist) directorPeter Bogdonavich(The Last Picture Show) revealed a few new projects he's working on including a screwball comedy calledSquirrel to the Nutswhich will be produced by both Baumbach and Anderson.Read on!

Bogdonavich says the comedy is"about an escort, a theatre director and a private detective."His previous work likeWhat's Up Docalready shows his love for similar screwball material so this sounds right up his alley. When you combine his comedic sensibilities with Baumbach and Anderson's unique style and comedy tastes, then you've got quite a project to look forward to in the future.

In addition, the adaptation ofThe Turn of the Century, a project we heard aboutback in February, is still very much in the cards. The screenplay for that project is already done, but it's unsure how soon he might tackle that or the aforementioned comedy. This is quite an amazing set of projects for a filmmaker who is getting up there in years. Of course, that's not stopping Clint Eastwood so why should that stop Mr. Bogdanovich from partaking in the mixture of two different generations of filmmakers?Interested?

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Casting Tidbits: Eugene Levy, Jeremy Piven and Casey Affleck« FirstShowing.net

We're now a quarter of an inch tall, and sixty four feet from the Casting Tidbits. That's an equivalent of three-point-two miles. That's a long way. Even for a man of science. First up,Varietyreports the hilariousEugene Levyhas snagged a role in the hockey centric comedyGoon, an adaptation ofDoug Smith and Adam Frattasio's bookGoon: The True Story of an Unlikely Journey Into Minor League Hockey. The film follows a bouncer (Seann William Scott) who joins a rag-tag hockey team and inspires them to greatness and Jay Baruchel is already signed on to play his best friend. No word on what character Levy will play, but a good bet might be the coach.

Second, in a press release from Dimension Films, the entire cast has been announced for Robert Rodriguez's action adventure family filmSpy Kids 4: All the Time in the World. Though we've previously mentioned most of the cast members in previous Casting Tidbits, one name has not yet been revealed.Jeremy Pivenis playing the villain known as the Timekeeper who threatens to take over the planet and forces retired agent Marissa Cortez Wilson (Jessica Alba) back into action along with her two twin step-kids with the help of the original Spy Kids Carmen and Juni Cortez (Alexa Vega and Daryl Sabara). Robert Rodrigiuez is back as director, director of photography, editor and visual effects supervisor on the film.

Next,THRreportsCasey Affleck(Gone, Baby, Gone) andJudd Hirsch(Independence Day) have joined the ever-growing cast of Brett Ratner's action comedyTower Heist. The film follows an overworked manager (Ben Stiller) of an illustrious tower residence who leads a team of defrauded workers in a heist of its penthouse tenant, a Bernie Madoff-type Wall Street capitalist (Alan Alda) who pulled a Ponzi scheme and swindled the staff. Affleck will play Stiller's character's friend who works with him in the high-rise, but wants no part of the heist and wants to turn him and his co-workers in for their scheming. No word on which character Hirsch will play in the film.

Also,EmpirereportsRichard Griffiths(Uncle Vernon from theHarry Potterfranchise) will play King George II inPirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. The casting was revealed in a quick chat with Geoffrey Rush who recalled his trend of taking roles advising royalty fromElizabethand the sequelThe Golden AgetoThe King's Speech. Then he continued by saying Barbosa is a privateer in King George II's court where he mentors the historical leader as well.

Finally,Varietyreports the charmingAngela Lansbury(Beauty and the Beast,"Murder, She Wrote") has joined the cast of the adaptation ofMr. Popper's Penguinsstarring Jim Carrey. The story follows Mr. Popper, a high-powered, New York businessman who suddenly inherits six penguins. He soon realizes the difficulties of raising the animals and faces major challenges at work and home. Lansbury is playing Mrs. Van Gundy, the owner of a local tavern that Mr. Popper attempts to buy. She joins a cast that already includes Carla Gugino (Watchmen) and Philip Baker Hall (Magnolia).

Well, that's all for this edition ofCasting Tidbits. Be sure to stay tuned for more casting updates on the way.

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Matt Damon Talks Bourne and Soderbergh's Liberace Biopic« FirstShowing.net

Lately there's been a lot of chatter surrounding the offshoot from the Jason Bourne franchise thatMatt Damonhelped build with directors Tony Gilroy and Paul Greengrass. Though Damon and the latter filmmakerstepped awayfrom another sequel, recently it was revealed Gilroy wouldboth direct and writethe next installment ,The Bourne Legacy, butwithout the focuson amnesiac operative Jason Bourne. Well in an interview withEW, Damon cleared the air aboutrecent commentsthat made him sound out of the loop and bitter about the Bourne-less feature and even has news on the gestatingLiberace biopicfrom Steven Soderbergh.

First with Bourne, when the actor mentions that,"Nobody bothered to call me,"he wasn't saying that he hadn't been aware of project and the franchise continuing without him. Here's what Damon had to say about his comments and his future with the Bourne franchise:

"I was in a roundtable and they were, like, badgering me about the next Bournemovie. And I was like, 'I don’t know, guys, they didn’t call me. They’re doing another movie with Tony.' I think it’s asmart thing to do. It doesn’t interfere with Paul {Greengrass} and me doing a movie. As I understand it, if you think ofX-Menand thenWolverine, it’s just that process in reverse. Tony doesn’t want to hurt the Bourne story. So as I understand it, Jason Bourne is alive in the world that Tony’s going to create. I don’t appear in it, but it’s very much that world. As far as Paul and I are concerned, as long as there’s room for us to come in and do another one, we’re thrilled."

So though Damon isn't doing another Bourne sequel now, apparently he and Greengrass aren't adverse to coming back to the series down the road, and that's definitely some good news. The real question will be whether audiences want to follow another character in the Bourne universe, with a Bourne title, but no Jason Bourne in the story. I guess we'll have to wait and find out.

On the Liberace biopic front, we'veheardintermittentupdatesfrom directorSteven Soderberghsince the project was announced years ago withMichael Douglasattached to staras the iconic pianist. Since Damon is still lined up to play Scott Thorson, one of Liberace's bitter companions, the actor had some relieving news about the gestating project which has had an uncertain future since Douglasrecently revealedhe was diagnosed with Stage 4 throat cancer. Well apparently Douglas isrecovering just fine, is primed to get back to work, and has cleared his schedule to shoot the Liberace biopic next summer. Here's what Damon had to say about that and his upcoming slate:

"I’m doing a few weeks onContagionwith {Steven} Soderbergh, and then I’m doing Cameron Crowe’s movie {We Built A Zoo} in the spring. And then we’replanning on doingLiberacein the summer with Michael {Douglas}. And I’ve talked to Michael and everything’s on schedule for him, which is great. Sowe’ve all cleared our schedulesand are all really excited about that happening. And then the fall’s wide open. So I’d love to do something with Paul, whether we doBourneor something else. I know he’s been looking for something."

So there you have it. Bourne isn't entirely out of the question for Damon or Greengrass sometime down the road and Soderbergh's Liberace biopic is on track to shoot next year. It's great to hear that Douglas has recovered so quickly and is eager to get back on screen. Meanwhile, Damon has quite an impressive variety in the films on his future slate, and I honestly can't wait to see every single one of them.How about you?

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Tom Hardy Circling Key Role in 'Snow White and the Huntsman'« FirstShowing.net

Many fans were excited by thenewsthatInceptionstarTom Hardyhad snagged a major, unrevealedrole in the next Batman moviefrom Chris Nolan. In addition, we recently heard that he'sone of the frontrunnersfor the lead role inTotal Recall. Though his schedule seemed rather crowded, it looks like he's making time to squeeze in a project between production on the McG action comedyThis Means Warwith Chris Pine, and the upcoming sequel toThe Dark Knight.The Playlistreports that Hardy is close to signing a deal to take a major roleSnow White and the Huntsman, one of the many fairytale adaptations now in development.

Since the project was unveiled at the end of September, development has moved rather swiftly in a short amount of time to have already reached casting. Of course withThe Brothers Grimm: Snow WhiteandSnow and the Sevenstill in the works, it's easy to see why time is of the essence. In addition to Hardy's role as the titular hunstman named Eric (haunted by the death of his wife at the hands of a white wolf), apparently Universal wants to getAngelina Jolieto play Ravenna, the evil queen and villain of the piece. Though she'll be completing her directorial debut on theBosnia War set love storywe recently heard about, she doesn't have any projects lined up as an actress next year. However, hersupposed linkto Tim Burton's evil queen centric filmMaleficentmay keep her from taking the role.

As for Snow White, it looks like an unknown will take the role as a huge casting call is apparently taking place in the UK right now. Though The Playlist says the script is a very strong action adventure story, I'm kind of worried about the rushed development tainting what would-be a unique adaptation of the classic fairytale. It sounds like they're on the right track with the casting, but withcommercial directorRupert Sandersmaking his feature directorial debut with this big of a film, it does raise some concerns.What do you guys think?

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Francis Ford Coppola Quietly Shooting New Film with Val Kilmer« FirstShowing.net

Staying under the radar with his more recent films likeTetroandYouth Without Youth, directorFrancis Ford Coppolais working out of the spotlight yet again asDeadlinereports the filmmaker is already quietly shooting his next film. So what is this unheard of project? TitledTwixt Now and Sunrise, the film is described as a thriller with horror elements and features slightly faded starVal Kilmerin the lead role as a horror novelist.Elle Fanning(The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) andBruce Dern(Monster) make-up the supporting cast. Though no details are mentioned, apparently the film is based on a short story by Coppola himself.

Though he's not making films with as high of a profile as his previous projects, the decade sabbatical Coppola took afterThe Rainmakercertainly left a void. Though his most recent films haven't measured up to the likes ofThe Godfather, the man is still truly an auteur as he rounds up financing himself without studio interference. Even more exciting is that this will be the first venture into a horror film for Coppola since his turn directing 1963'sDementia 13for producer Roger Corman (though some people thinkJackis so bad, that it's scary). Hopefully we'll hear more about his new project sooner than later.Interested?

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