What is Casting Couch? Currently its a column that reports on casting news, but it’s thinking about getting into directing.
The last time we saw Toby Jones’ Captain America character, Dr. Arnim Zola, he was in captivity and giving up the goods on all of his boss, the Red Skull’s, super-secret plans. Fans of the comics know that Zola isn’t just some anonymous patsy who’s going to fade into the background, however. Mad scientists don’t go out like that. Instead, Zola has his mind put into a weird robot body that projects his face on his tummy and he continues to give Cap problems down through the ages. That’s in the comics. But now we’ve gotten some indication that we might be seeing some of this stuff play out in the upcoming Captain America movies as well. When giving an interview to Hey U Guys, Jones confirmed that he will indeed be returning for Captain America: The Winter Soldier, though whether it will just be through flashbacks to the 40s or if we’re going to see him as his present-day tummy robot isn’t yet clear. You gotta root for tummy robot though, right?
Things regarding a fifth Terminator movie seem to be getting back on track. A few years ago Justin Lin was supposed to direct Terminator 5 and Arnold Schwarzenegger was said to have interest in being involved, but once the film lost its director things stalled out. Now that Annapurna Pictures has the rights to the Terminator franchise, however, writers Laeta Kalogridis and Patrick Lussier have been brought on to pen a new script, and Bleeding Cool has gotten verbal confirmation from Schwarzenegger himself that he will be appearing in the film. Seeing as the T-800 model of cyborg that Schwarzenegger made famous is eternally young and he is now very old, it’s not exactly clear what his role in the film will be, but presumably the new writers will be able to come up with something. Trying to make a Terminator movie without Arnie’s Austrian accent keeping things classy would just be dumb.
Gbenga Akinnagbe probably isn’t yet a household name, but he’s done a lot of TV work, and he was pretty memorable playing Chris Partlow on The Wire. And now it looks like he’s getting a chance to move up a rung or two on the acting ladder. THR is reporting the news out of Sundance that Akinnagbe will not only be getting the chance to star in a new Nigerian crime film called Render to Caesar, but he’s going to get a producing credit on the project as well. That’s basically the first step toward starting your own clothing line. Caesar is said to be about two detectives who stalk a dangerous crime lord in Lagos, it will be made in English, and Onyekachi Ejim is on board to direct. You can expect to see it making the festival rounds and looking for international distribution sometime in the near future.
Speaking of actors who like to rack up credits for doing jobs other than just acting, there’s some new James Franco news floating around out there. The aspiring jack of many trades has told MTV that he’s pretty interested in doing an adaptation of James Ellroy’s 1995 crime novel, “American Tabloid,” and not only is he looking to star in the film, but he also intends on directing. Eventually. “It’s not all put together yet,” Franco cautioned. “It’s still early. You’re getting the scoop.” Ellroy’s novel is a sweeping, epic tale that follows the interweaving stories of three main characters, starts in the late 50s, and ends with the Kennedy assassination. If that sounds like the sort of complex material that’s going to be too difficult to adapt into one feature film to you, just remember, Franco is the quack who also intends on directing an adaptation of “As I Lay Dying.” Nobody can fault the guy for lacking in ambition, that’s for sure.