
As production looms closer for Andrew Niccol’s (In Time) adaptation of the Stephanie Meyer sci-fi novel The Host, the director continues to fill out his cast. Saoirse Ronan is onboard as the protagonist Melanie, a young woman whose body is invaded by an alien name Wanderer. Diane Kruger (Inglorious Basterds) is now apparently in talks to play The Seeker. In the world of the film, a parasitic alien species is nearly finished wiping out the human population by taking over the consciousness of each person. A soul named Wanderer is attempting to take control of Melanie’s consciousness, but faces strong opposition by what remains of the girl. Hit the jump for more.

Back in August, we reported that a number of actresses were in the running to star in one of two lead female roles opposite Tom Cruise in Tron: Legacy director Joseph Kosinski’s sci-fi pic Horizons (the project has also been referred to as Oblivion, but every story seems to go back and forth on what the title is). Jessica Chastain eventually won the role, and since “shortlist” and “reading with” stories are all the rage, three actresses are now apparently poised to read for the other lead role with Cruise this weekend: Kate Beckinsale, Diane Kruger, and Captain America’s Hayley Atwell. Hit the jump for more.

Now that Len Wiseman’s remake of Total Recall has Colin Farrell in the role originally played by Arnold Schwarzenegger in the 1990 Paul Verhoeven film, the film is casting for the lead female roles. For those who haven’t seen the original film, the two lead female roles are Douglas Quaid’s (Farrell) wife Lori (played in the original film by Sharon Stone) and the other is Martian freedom fighter Melina (originally played by Rachel Ticotin).
Deadline reports that Diane Kruger and Kate Bosworth have read for the role of Lori; Paula Patton, Jessica Biel, and Eva Green have read for Melina, and Eva Mendes has read for both roles. Hit the jump for my thoughts on the casting. Total Recall is set to open on August 3, 2012.

Taken, for all of its faults (and there were many), at least stumbled upon the fact that Liam Neeson can be a badass action star. Unknown, clearly influenced by Taken and other Euro-trash thrillers, says “Fantastic! Let’s put his ass-kicking persona all the way at the end of the movie and then just have him stumble around for the majority of the runtime!” Rather than offer up a complex mystery built around an unreliable protagonist, Unknown clears up any major misunderstanding by the end of the first act, and then we’re bored stupid by Neeson wandering around as he’s hunted by non-descript bad guys as the clumsy narrative lurches towards an inevitable twist and his transformation to Taken Guy. The film wastes its premise, its mystery, its lead actor, and only at the end does it have the courtesy to become laughably terrible.

Opening this weekend is director Jaume Collet-Serra’s (Orphan) Unknown and it stars Liam Neeson, January Jones, Diane Kruger, Bruno Ganz, Aidan Quinn and Frank Langella. The film is about a man who awakens from a coma (Neeson) to discover that someone has taken on his identity and that no one believes him. With the help of a young woman (Kruger), he sets out to prove who he is. You can watch some clips here.
While I only got to cover the press conference for Unknown, our partners at Omelete landed TV interviews with the cast, so hit the jump to watch their interview with Diane Kruger. She talks about her character, working for Jaume Collet-Serra, Berlin (where the movie takes place), the Superman rumors, and her next movie Farwell, My Queen (she’s going to play Marie Antoinette).

Opening this weekend is director Jaume Collet-Serra’s (Orphan) Unknown and it stars Liam Neeson, January Jones, Diane Kruger, Bruno Ganz, Aidan Quinn and Frank Langella. The film is about a man who awakens from a coma (Neeson) only to discover that someone has taken on his identity and that no one believes him. With the help of a young woman (Kruger), he sets out to prove who he is. You can watch some clips here.
While I only got to cover the press conference for Unknown, our partners at Omelete landed TV interviews, so hit the jump to watch their interview with Liam Neeson. He talks about visiting Brazil, how does Unknown compare to Taken, his feelings on being an action star, The Grey with Joe Carnahan, and more.

We have two pieces of casting news for you this afternoon. First up, Variety reports that Diane Kruger and Lea Seydoux (Robin Hood) have joined the French period drama Les Adieux a la reine. The film is based on the novel by Chantal Thomas and centers on “the three decisive days of the French Revolution in July 1789, told from the point of view of Marie Antoinette’s reader.” Kruger will play Antoinette in the film, which also stars Gerard Depardieu and Noemie Lovski (The French Kissers). Benoit Jacquot will direct.
Hit the jump for news on Richard Gere joining Arbitrage.

With director Jaume Collet-Serra’s (Orphan) Unknown opening Febrauary 18, Warner Bros. has sent over 5 clips from the film which stars Liam Neeson, January Jones, Diane Kruger, Bruno Ganz, Aidan Quinn and Frank Langella. Here’s the synopsis:
Dr. Martin Harris (Neeson) awakens after a car accident in Berlin to discover that his wife (Jones) suddenly doesn’t recognize him and another man (Quinn) has assumed his identity. Ignored by disbelieving authorities and hunted by mysterious assassins, he finds himself alone, tired, and on the run. Aided by an unlikely ally (Kruger), Martin plunges headlong into a deadly mystery that will force him to question his sanity, his identity, and just how far he’s willing to go to uncover the truth.
Hit the jump to check out the clips:

The internet has been abuzz ever since a rumor spread that Alice Eve, Diane Kruger and Rosamund Pike are in contention for a female lead in Zack Snyder’s upcoming Superman reboot. Even moreso when it was revealed that the role in question was not Lois Lane — who, someone, somewhere exclaimed was not going to feature in the film. Well, good news for Supe fans: Latino Review has just received word from a “reliable source” that Lois Lane will indeed be in the film and that the role Eve, Kruger and Pike are vying for is that of the Kryptonian villainous Ursa, who, fans may recall, is General Zod’s right hand man — er, woman. Sarah Douglass portrayed the character in Superman II to memorable results, and damn near wrecked all of Metropolis attempting to take down the son of Jor-El. More after the jump.

Alice Eve (She’s Out of My League), Diane Kruger (Inglourious Basterds), and Rosamund Pike (An Education) are reportedly on the short list to play the female lead in the new Superman film opposite Henry Cavill (The Tudors). But get this — it’s not Lois Lane. It has not been revealed what role they’re up for, surely thanks to the secrecy producer Christopher Nolan is able to maintain on his projects. It is not specified if Lois will appear in a reduced capacity, but it appears the female lead will not be Ms. Lane as assumed in previous rumors. Shades of Mary Jane Watson’s absence in the Spider-Man reboot in favor of Emma Stone’s Gwen Stacey.
Zack Snyder is directing the superhero reboot from a script by David Goyer, due in December 2012. More after the jump:

Diane Kruger is set to take Eva Green’s place as Marie Antoinette in Benoit Jacquot’s Farewell, My Queen. The film, set near the end of the French Revolution, is an adaptation of a novel by Chantal Thomas. Kruger joins stars Lea Seydoux as a reader to Antoinette and Gerard Depardieu in an unknown role. Eva Green is also no longer starring in Michael Mann’s Capa, having been replaced by Gemma Arterton. Director Benoit Jacquot is probably best known for his films The School of Flesh and The Untouchable. Farewell, My Queen is set to begin filming sometime next spring. via ThePlaylist.

Warner Bros. has released the poster for their upcoming thriller Unknown. The film stars Liam Neeson as a man who awakens from a car crash only to find that another man has assumed his identity. Judging by the poster, at some point in the movie Neeson’s face falls into the Uncanny Valley.
Hit the jump to check out the poster and click here to see the trailer. Unknown also stars January Jones and Diane Kruger. It opens February 18, 2011. [Update: We've updated the story with the high resolution version of the poster]

The “Liam Neeson Beats People Up” film movement continues with Unknown, the trailer to which has just been released by Warner Bros. After taking on slave traders in Taken and scenery in The A-, Team, Neeson now turns his fists towards identity thieves. January Jones (Mad Men), Diane Kruger (Inglorious Basterds), Frank Langella (Frost/Nixon) and Aidan Quinn (In Dreams) also star in the thriller, helmed by Jaume Collet-Serra ( Orphan). Check out the trailer after the jump.

IFC Films has released the trailer for Inhale. The drama stars Dermot Mulroney and Diane Kruger as parents who are forced to take their dying daughter to Mexico for an illegal organ transplant. As you can see by this trailer, Mexico is the most dangerous place in the world for white people and you must be incredibly brave/stupid to take your child there for surgery. And somehow this story also involves explosions, car chases, and shootouts. On the plus side, there’s no dealing with insurance companies.
Hit the jump to check out the unintentionally hilarious trailer. Inhale opens October 23rd.

Principal photography has begun on Jaume Collet-Serra’s (Orphan) next project Unknown White Male in Germany. According to Warner Bros., the film will be shot entirely on location, with some filming at Studio Babelsberg, the oldest large-scale studio complex in the world. The film stars Liam Neeson (Schindler’s List, Clash of the Titans), Diane Kruger (Inglorious Basterds), January Jones (Mad Men), Aidan Quinn (The Book of Daniel), Bruno Ganz (The Reader) and Frank Langella (Frost/Nixon). For the synopsis and more on the film, hit the jump:
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