John Leguizamo Joins KICK-ASS 2 and THE COUNSELOR; Demian Bichir Co-Stars in THE HEAT; Nicole Holofcener Casts Christopher Smith

Get out your fishing rod because it’s time for some casting:

• John Leguizamo signed up for Kick-Ass 2 and will star opposite Michael Fassbender, Brad Pitt, Penelope Cruz, and Cameron Diaz in Ridley Scott‘s The Counselor.
• Demian Bichir will join Melissa McCarthy and Sandra Bullock in The Heat, directed by Paul Feig (Bridesmaids).
• Christopher Smith will star with Julia Louis-Dreyfus and James Gandolfini in the latest film from writer/director Nicole Holofcener (Please Give).

Leguizamo will play the bodyguard assigned to protect Red Mist (Christopher Mintz-Plasse) in Kick-Ass 2.  Aaron Johnson and Chloe Moretz will reprise their roles as Kick-Ass and Hit Girl, respectively.  Nicolas Cage may return for a cameo.  Red Mist will be one villain in the sequel, and he may be joined by another bodyguard that goes by the name Mother Russia.  Writer/director Jeff Wadlow starts shooting in the fall.

Cormac McCarthy‘s script for The Counselor centers on an attorney (Fassbender) who teams with Reiner (Bardem) to sell $20 million worth of cocaine.  Leguizamo will play a low-level drug dealer.  We got our first look at Pitt on set (in a cowboy hat!) earlier today.  The Scott-directed film should hit theaters in 2013.

Katie Dippold‘s script for The Heat unites an uptight FBI agent (Bullock) and a tough Boston cop (McCarthy): “They must team up to take down a drug lord but first have to overcome their mutual distrust and learn to work together.”  According to Deadline, Bichir will play a fellow FBI agent.  Jessica Chaffin and Jamie Denbo also star.  Bichir is a super charismatic guy, and his recent Best Actor Oscar nomination for A Better Life ought to open up many doors.  I am eager to see how Feig plans to use the actor.

Holofcener’s untitled feature cast Louis-Dreyfus as a masseuse who falls in love with new friend’s husband (Gandolfini).  Variety says Smith, star of Paranormal Activity 3, will play a young man whom the masseuse meets prior to the love affair.  The Fox Searchlight production is scheduled to begin filming in the next few weeks.