Ron Howard has ambitious plans for his adaptation of Stephen King’s seven-book series The Dark Tower, and he’s just as ambitious when it comes to casting it: His producing partner, Brian Grazer, confirmed to MTV that Javier Bardem is in negotiations to play the lead role of gunslinger Roland Deschain. “We’re in the process of trying to put that together,” Grazer said. “He’s locked in psychologically. He really wants to do it, so we’re absolutely rooting for him to do it.” Still there are some potential stumbling blocks to this signing: The Dark Tower franchise will demand his sizable commitment to three tentpole movies and two television series, and Bardem — a new father — has famously flirted with starring in big-budget movies like Nine and Minority Report before backing out at the last minute. [MTV]
