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.
“Lilo & Stitch”
Jon M. Chu is gearing up to take a Hawaiian rollercoaster ride. The “In the Heights” and “Crazy Rich Asians” director is reportedly in talks to take on a live-action version of Disney’s hit 2002 animated feature “Lilo & Stitch.” The project was announced back in late 2018. The studio has yet to announce if the movie will release in theaters or on Disney+ (though it had previously been rumored to go straight-to-streaming), nor has the movie set a screenwriter or any actors, but Dan Lin and Jonathan Eirich of Rideback and of the studio’s recent live-action “Aladdin” will produce the project. U.K.-based Lucinda Syson was the casting director for that project, which filmed in London, so we may see her return when “Lilo & Stitch” gets off the ground, depending on where filming will take place.
“Wonder Girl”
Greg Berlanti and The CW are looking ahead to their next DC superhero project—this time, “Wonder Girl.” The network is developing a drama series based on the DC characters created by Joëlle Jones. “Queen of the South” executive producer and co-showrunner Dailyn Rodriguez will reportedly write the adaptation, which centers on Yara Flor, a Latina Dreamer who was born of an Amazonian Warrior and a Brazilian River God and who learns that she is Wonder Girl. Flor was recently revealed as a new Wonder Woman, so the new series will be an origin story that will likely in time lead up to that latest revelation. No casting has been announced, but keep an eye out on regular Berlanti-CW series collaborators Rapaport/Baldasare for casting opportunities.
“Dial M For Murder”
A classic Hitchcock film will get the small-screen treatment. MGM/UA Television is reportedly developing the limited series “Dial M For Murder” based on the 1952 play and 1954 movie of the same name. Alicia Vikander will executive produce through her Vikarious Film banner, and the Oscar winner is eyeing the starring role in the series, which will reimagine the classic suspense thriller story from the female perspective. Michael Mitnick (“The Giver”) is creating and writing the project with “Boardwalk Empire” creator Terence Winter overseeing. According to Deadline, “Dial M For Murder” is being developed as an anthology series with potential follow-up installments in the suspense thriller genre, all also told from the female lens. Other than Vikander, there are no casting suspects at this time.
“The Pink Panther”
After the success of the recent live-action-CGI hybrid “Sonic the Hedgehog” over at Paramount, MGM is also looking to bring to life another classic animated character. The studio is bringing on “Sonic” director Jeff Fowler to direct a feature that is in development centered on The Pink Panther. Chris Bremner (“Bad Boys for Life”) will write the reimagining of the character, which is MGM’s longest and most successful comedy franchise. The film was initially announced back in 2014 and has sat in development with few updates, so this is the project’s latest chance at production. Collette Sunderman is the casting director.
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