Kevin Spacey to Star in CAPTAIN OF THE GATE, Meryl Streep Set for Jonathan Demme Project, and Amy Ryan Joins MONSTER TRUCKS

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Kevin Spacey to Play Winston Churchill, Meryl Streep Set for Jonathan Demme/Diablo Cody Project, and Amy Ryan Joins MONSTER TRUCKS

By Adam Chitwood

Published Mar 25, 2014

Kevin Spacey will play Winston Churchill in Captain of the Gate. Meryl Streep will star in a project from director Jonathan Demme & writer Diablo Cody

We have a few interesting casting stories to attend to this afternoon. Briefly:

Kevin Spacey is adding another politician to his roster, as he is set to take on the role of Winston Churchill in the drama Captain of the Gate.
Meryl Streep is attached to star in a new project with Jonathan Demme onboard to direct from a script by Diablo Cody.
Amy Ryan has been added to the live-action/CG hybrid film Monster Trucks.

Hit the jump for more details on the aforementioned casting.

Fresh off the second season of House of Cards and a recent stage run as Richard III, THR reports that Kevin Spacey has agreed to play Winston Churchill in the independently financed feature Captain of the Gate. The film will chronicle Churchill’s rise to power as the U.K. prime minister, culminating in his stand against parliament to defend Britain from Adolf Hitler’s reign. Sierra/Affinity is producing and financing the project with a script by Ben Kaplan (WWII in HD), but a director is not yet attached. StudioCanal is also in talks to come onboard as a producer.

Additionally, an attractive package is forming with Meryl Streep, Jonathan Demme, and Diablo Cody. The Wrap reports that Streep is attached to star in a film written by Cody, with Demme set to direct. Tentatively titled Ricky and the Flash, the story revolves around a woman who abandoned her family when she was young in order to seek fame in California. Years later, she returns home and attempts to reassume her role as a mother. Demme and Cody are both Oscar winners in their respective trades (for Silence of the Lambs and Juno), and they make for a fascinating pairing—especially with Streep attached to star. The project is out to studios and production companies now, with Universal and Fox 2000 expressing early interest.

Finally, Paramount’s Monster Trucks has added Academy Award nominee Amy Ryan to its cast. The CG/live-action hybrid film will be directed by Chris Wedge, but plot details are currently under wraps. Deadline reports that Ryan will play a single mom trying to make ends meet while raising her teenage son.