From the casting news universe come these two tidbits today:

  • Lake Bell (No Strings Attached) has signed on to star alongside Jon Hamm and Aasif Mandvi in the Disney sports drama Million Dollar Arm.
  • Jeremy Irvine (War Horse) and Phoebe Fox (One DayBlack Mirror) will star in The Woman in Black: Angel of Death, the sequel to 2012’s Daniel Radcliffe-led horror flick The Woman in Black.

Hit the jump for more on each project. 

The news of Bell’s involvement with Disney’s Million Dollar Arm comes courtesy of The Playlist, who recently spoke with her at Sundance London.  The actress herself revealed that she would be starring in the baseball drama.  “I’m starting a big studio movie, as an actor for hire, for Disney.  It’s called Million Dollar Arm," she told told the outlet of her participation in the film.  Bell will be joining fellow cast members, Hamm, Mandvi, Alan Arkin and Suraj Sharma in the film about a sports agent (Hamm) who uses a TV show competition – a la American Idol - to find players for Major League Baseball amongst cricket players in India.  The specifics of Bell’s role are currently unknown, as the actress refrained from revealing any more details.  Production for the film is scheduled to kick off next month in Mumbai.

From a “true story” baseball drama, we move on to a horrifying sequel.  More than a year after it was announced that the British horror drama The Woman in Black was getting a second installment, Simon Oakes, President and CEO of Hammer, announced today that Irvine and Fox would be starring in The Woman in Black: Angel of Death.  The film will be director Tom Harper’s first feature film, and will pick up forty years from where the original left off.  It will follow the siege of Eel Marsh House by the government and focus on its new inhabitants – a group of evacuated children.  The nature of Irvine and Fox’s roles are unknown at the time.

Here’s the full press release:

JEREMY IRVINE AND PHOEBE FOX

SET TO STAR IN

HAMMER’S THE WOMAN IN BLACK: ANGEL OF DEATH

London – 29 April 2013:  Jeremy Irvine (WAR HORSE, THE RAILWAY MAN) and British actress Phoebe Fox (‘Black Mirror’, ‘Switch’) have signed on to star in THE WOMAN IN BLACK: ANGEL OF DEATHthe next installment in the series of the worldwide box office hit THE WOMAN IN BLACK.  The announcement was made today by Simon Oakes, President & CEO of Hammer and Vice-Chairman of Exclusive Media, Guy East and Nigel Sinclair, Co-Chairmen of Exclusive Media (Hammer’s parent company), Brian Oliver, President of Cross Creek Pictures and Xavier Marchand, Entertainment One’s President of Worldwide Distribution.

THE WOMAN IN BLACK: ANGEL OF DEATH will continue the story four decades later. Seized by the government during World War II, the sudden arrival of a group of evacuated children at Eel Marsh House awakens its darkest inhabitant.

Directed by Tom Harper, the film will be brought to the big screen by the same production team behind THE WOMAN IN BLACK and produced by Exclusive Media’s Tobin Armbrust and Simon Oakes, Cross Creek Pictures’ Brian Oliver and Talisman Films’ Richard Jackson, in addition to Roy Lee who will serve as Executive Producer.

Screenwriter Jon Croker (DESERT DANCER) wrote the screenplay, based on an original story by Susan Hill (The Woman In Black).

Sales are being handled by Alex Walton, Exclusive Media’s President of International Sales and Distribution who will introduce the title to buyers at Cannes.  Entertainment One Films will once again co-finance the film and distribute in the UK, Spain and Canada.

Simon Oakes, Vice-Chairman of Exclusive Media and President & CEO of Hammer said: “We are thrilled to have Jeremy and Phoebe join our team on THE WOMAN IN BLACK:  ANGEL OF DEATH.  I definitely feel that under the direction of Tom Harper, they will take Jon Croker’s script and each deliver a wonderfully compelling performance.”

Director Tom Harper said: “Jeremy and Phoebe are fantastic actors to continue THE WOMAN IN BLACK’s chilling tale.  I’m looking forward to working with them both on the film and can’t wait to start shooting with the pair.”

Jeremy Irvine will next be seen in THE RAILWAY MAN opposite Colin Firth and NicoleKidman. He recently wrapped production on THE WORLD MADE STRAIGHT and ONE NIGHT IN OLD MEXICO.