Road Trip!: Robert Downey Jr. has signed on for Todd Philips’s Due Date. He’ll play a guy racing across the country to get home for the birth of his first child, all the while stuck with a stranger he doesn’t get along with (Zach Galifianakis). Spoiler alert: They eventually bond, probably over a radio-sing-along session. [Variety]
Dance-Off: Mila Kunis is in talks for Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan, a supernatural thriller set in the world of ballet. Natalie Portman stars as a dancer gearing up for a big performance, who is tormented by a rival who may not be real; Kunis will play the rival, Lilly. Lilly? She’s supposed to be a terrifying ghost ballerina and they named her Lilly? [HR]
Pre-King: Kong: King of Skull Island, a prequel to the King Kong tale, published in 2005, has been optioned by Spirit Pictures. The movie will focus on the backstory of Skull Island and how Kong ended up there and will introduce other giant gorillas and dinosaurs; it will be shot in motion-capture technology. Also: sweet giant gorillas and dinosaurs! [Variety]
You All Everybody: Will Charlie rise from the grave? Maybe! But, as speculated, Dominic Monaghan’s presence in those recent promos for ABC were owing to his being cast on another one of the network’s shows, FlashForward. The series, already being marketed heavily, centers around a global event in which everyone blacks out for two minutes, seventeen seconds and has visions six months into the future. No word on who Monaghan will be playing, which means he’ll probably just be the bassist from Drive Shaft again. [Variety]
DeLillo on Screen: David Cronenberg will direct an adaptation of Don DeLillo’s 2003 novel Cosmopolis. The book covers one day in the life of a 28-year-old billionaire as he crosses Manhattan for a haircut in a stretch limo and goes through all kinds of telling incidents. Sounds great, but just one question — how is Cronenberg gonna work a naked knife fight into that? [HR]
You All Everybody: Will Charlie rise from the grave? Maybe! But, as speculated, Dominic Monaghan’s presence in those recent promos for ABC were owing to his being cast on another one of the network’s shows, FlashForward. The series, already being marketed heavily, centers around a global event in which everyone blacks out for two minutes, seventeen seconds and has visions six months into the future. No word on who Monaghan will be playing, which means he’ll probably just be the bassist from Drive Shaft again. [Variety]
