We've got some casting stories for you this afternoon. First up, Luke Evans—a star who has yet to carry a single movie—is set to lead the maximum-security prison thriller, Three Seconds.  Written by Matt Cook and based on the book by Scandinavian novel by Anders Roslund and Borge Hellstrom, the story revolves around "a man who is dispatched by the FBI to infiltrate the Polish mafia’s New York drug trade. Forced undercover in maximum security prison when his cover’s sprung and he’s abandoned by the FBI, his only chance of survival is to break out of the prison or die."  I want to say that Evans could bring something distinctive to this role, but he has yet to bring anything distinctive to any role.  He's Orlando Bloom without a sense of humor.

Variety reports that the film's "edge" might come from the film's director, Otto Bathurst, who has helmed episodes of the critically acclaimed British series Black Mirror and Peaky Blinders.  I hope he gets a good performance from Evans, because this sounds like it could be a fun B-movie.  Shooting begins this Spring in New York.

Moving on, Amanda Seyfried and Theo James are on board to star in Chase Palmer's Black Lung.  Per the press release, the supernatural thriller has Seyfried playing Del,

"wife of a Utah coal miner (James) whose premonition moves her to save her husband just before an explosion in the mine traps all the other miners, an act that tests her marriage, puts her under suspicion of state officials tasked with the rescue, and stokes the resentment of all the other women in town. With time running out to save the entombed men, Del’s increasingly horrifying visions hint to something darker at play within the iconic mountain that looms over the plateau like an anvil, a darkness she comes to believe will consume them all."

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Setting aside the awful simile of "looms over the plateau like an anvil", this sounds like a very cool idea for a movie, although the heavy emphasis on the supernatural sounds a bit disconcerting.  I like the concept of a single supernatural act causing social strife in a small town.

Finally, Variety reports that Peter Dinklage has joined Ben Falcone's comedy Michelle Darnell starring Melissa McCarthy.  McCarthy plays "a titan of industry who is sent to prison after she’s caught for insider trading. When she emerges ready to rebrand herself as America’s latest sweetheart, not everyone she screwed over is so quick to forgive and forget."

Dinklage is reportedly playing the antagonist, and his role was open to any gender as long as the actor could effectively chew the scenery.  The studio also considered Sandra Bullock, Jon Hamm, and even Oprah Winfrey for the part.  While those are interesting choices, you really can't go wrong with Dinklage.

Michelle Darnell is set to open April 8, 2016.