Words of W(isdom).

Now fully cast (including Jesse Bradford as a Skull & Bones fratboy), Oliver Stone’s W gets a teaser poster for the Cannes crowd, replete with some of the better-known Bushisms.

Will James McAvoy play Bilbo Baggins? That’s the current rumor. “[D]irector del Toro adds, ‘I can tell you it’s down to a few names that we all agree upon. For our first choice, completely magically we all have the same name.’”

An Unexpected Party.

“Like Guillermo says, apart from extreme circumstances, we would never recast a character who appeared in the LOTR trilogy. You can read The Hobbit and pretty much see which characters play a part. The unknown facter is Film Two, which we are still developing.” Over the weekend, Peter Jackson and Guillermo del Toro ventured online to discuss The Hobbit. Not much in the way of news made (other than the quote above), although it’s worth reading for Del Toro’s thoughts on Smaug, among other things. It does sound like they’re winging this second “filler” movie, tho’, which could be real trouble.

Just Like a Woman…we think.

What’s stranger than Christian Bale as John Connor in McG’s forthcoming Terminator trilogy? How about the one and only Charlotte Gainsbourg reprising Claire Danes’ character from the third film? Uh, really, what are y’all doing in this hackmeisterly cash-grab?

Update: Order is restored: Gainsbourg is out, and Bryce Dallas Howard is in. That sadly makes more sense.

Carcharodon carcharias. A Great White.

Oliver Stone’s W finally gets its Cheney: Richard Dreyfuss. He joins Josh Brolin (Dubya), Elizabeth Banks (Laura), James Cromwell (41), Ellen Burstyn (Barbara), Jeffrey Wright (Powell), Thandie Newton (Rice), Ioan Gruffudd (Blair), and Scott Glenn (Rummy).

Update: I missed this last week: The role of Karl Rove goes to Toby Jones, a.k.a. the other Capote.

Glenn Rummy.

The casting of Oliver Stone’s W continues apace, with Scott Glenn as Donald Rumsfeld. That’s pretty good…Wish I’d thought of that.

That’s our Dubya.

“I think history is going to be very tough on him. But that doesn’t mean he isn’t a great story. It’s almost Capra-esque, the story of a guy who had very limited talents in life, except for the ability to sell himself. The fact that he had to overcome the shadow of his father and the weight of his family name — you have to admire his tenacity. There’s almost an Andy Griffith quality to him, from A Face in the Crowd. If Fitzgerald were alive today, he might be writing about him. He’s sort of a reverse Gatsby.”

EW checks in with Oliver Stone’s W (Dubya), examining, among other things, the hunt for Cheney. “Stone denies rumors that Robert Duvall turned down Cheney. And he won’t comment on reports that he’s talking to Paul Giamatti about the part. But casting has clearly been challenging.“

Ari imitates Life.

By way of Supercres, more interesting casting has come in on Oliver Stone’s W. Already a veteran of parroting fake news, The Daily Show‘s Rob Corddry will play Ari Fleischer, while chameleon Jeffrey Wright is in talks to play Colin Powell. Good and good.

Thandi Rice & Mr. Not-so-Fantastic.

The first family set, Oliver Stone’s W picks up some Dubya admin hangers-on: namely, Thandie Newton as Condi Rice and Ioan Gruffudd as Tony Blair. Those are both solid. “Among the key “W” roles yet to be cast are those of Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld and Karl Rove.“

The face in the misty light.

Dubya gets his damsel: Elizabeth Banks will play Laura Bush in Oliver Stone’s forthcoming W, with Josh Brolin in the title role. W starts shooting next month in Shreveport. As a admirer of Stone’s Nixon, I for one am looking forward to the finished product.

Update: Here comes 41. Stone casts James Cromwell and Ellen Burstyn as George H.W. and Barbara Bush respectively.

Tag: Casting