Welcome to Rumorville! Here you can learn about casting news that’s about to break in Hollywood. These speculations might be only rumors, but that doesn’t mean you can’t follow the trail all the way to the audition room.
“Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle” Sequel
After her breakthrough roles in this past summer’s hits “Crazy Rich Asians” and “Oceans 8,” Awkwafina may be heading to another box office smash. The star is allegedly in final negotiations to join the forthcoming “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle” sequel, a follow-up to the hit 2017 film starring Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Jack Black, and Karen Gillan. All four stars will reprise their roles in the sequel, and Jake Kasdan will also return as the director (as well as writers Scott Rosenberg and Jeff Pinkner). Awkwafina’s role is, as of now, being kept under wraps, but The Hollywood Reporter reports it will be “key” and “significant.” There’s no timeline for the film yet, but expect production to return to Atlanta, Georgia and likely Hawaii. Nicole Abellera and Jeanne McCarthy were the casting directors on part one, it can be expected they will return to this sequel.
“Parade”
The Broadway world is calling for a revival of “Parade,” and, according to BroadwayWorld, we may be getting one soon. Over the holiday, Roundabout Theatre Company reportedly held a reading of the Jason Robert Brown and Alfred Uhry musical helmed by Michael Arden and led by Ben Platt and Michaela Diamond. A reading doesn’t necessarily mean a feature production—Roundabout regularly holds readings—but considering the high demand for the show, this may be a sign of things to come. Arden has most recently directed the Broadway hit revival of “Once on This Island,” as well as Deaf West’s “Spring Awakening.” If we assume that reading turns into a full-fledged production, the director is a regular collaborator with Telsey + Company and specifically Craig Burns at the company.
“Simply Halston”
According to Deadline, Legendary Television is currently working on “Simply Halston,” a limited series starring and executive produced by Ewan McGregor about the rise and fall of Halston, the first American celebrity fashion designer. The series will be written by Sharr White (“The Affair”) and directed by Dan Minahan (“American Crime Story”). This isn’t Minahan’s first time working on a series about a legendary fashion designer following his Emmy-winning turn with FX’s “Versace: American Crime Story.” The series is still very early in development, but this will certainly be a project to watch. Courtney Bright and Nicole Daniels cast “American Crime Story” so there is a chance they could get called to do this series as well.
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