A change is in order for the cast of director Lynn Shelton’s (Your Sister’s Sister) upcoming dark comedy Laggies.  The story centers on a 28-year-old woman named Megan who is unable to cope with the pressures brought on by her boyfriend’s recent marriage proposal.  In turn, she escapes into the comfort of adolescence by befriending a group of high schoolers.  Anne Hathaway was initially set to lead the film as Megan, but due to scheduling conflicts with Christopher Nolan’s sci-fi pic Interstellar, she has had to back out.  EW now reports that Keira Knightley is in talks to come on as Hathaway’s replacement, and should she sign on the actress would appear onscreen opposite Chloe Grace Moretz, whose character is befriended by the grown-up Megan.

The project will mark a nice progression for Knightley, who lead last year’s swell romantic drama Anna Karenina and recently wrapped the studio thriller Jack Ryan and the indie Can a Song Save Your Life?.

Director Lynn Shelton is rounding up a rather impressive cast for her next film.  Deadline reports that Anne Hathaway, Chloe Moretz, Sam Rockwell, and Mark Webber (Scott Pilgrim vs. The World) are in negotiations to star the Touchy Feely and Your Sister’s Sister filmmaker’s dark comedy Laggies.  The story centers on a 28-year-old woman named Megan who is unable to cope with the pressures brought on by her boyfriend’s recent marriage proposal. In turn, she escapes into the comfort of adolescence by befriending a group of high schoolers.  Recent Oscar-winner Hathaway will lead the film as Megan, with Moretz eyed to play 16-year-old Annika, Webber in talks to play Megan’s boyfriend, and Rockwell set as an older character named Craig.

Andrea Seigel wrote the screenplay for Laggies, and the film marks the first time Shelton will direct something she hasn’t also written.  She most recently directed the drama Touchy Feely, which debuted at Sundance earlier this year.  This is one hell of an ensemble that Shelton has put together, and I look forward to checking out the finished product.

One of the many films that premiered in the U.S. Dramatic Competition at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival was director Lynn Shelton’s Touchy Feely.  The film centers on a massage therapist played by Rosemarie Dewitt who suddenly develops an aversion to touching skin, and her dentist brother (Josh Pais) who begins to get a reputation as a healer and is unprepared for his immediate success.  As the family members (including Ellen Page as Pais’ daughter) deal with their newfound afflictions and admirations, they also discover themselves.  The film also stars Scoot McNairy, Allison Janney and Ron Livingston.

Shortly after the film’s premiere at Sundance, I was able to get an exclusive phone interview with writer/director Lynn Shelton.  During the conversation, she told me all about her process of crafting the characters and the script, how Allison Janney’s role was almost played by Catherine Keener, why she felt compelled to edit the film herself and about her next project, Laggies which will star Rebecca Hall.  Click after the jump to read the whole interview.

The first trailer for Your Sister’s Sister has gone online.  The film stars Mark Duplass as a man still mourning his brother’s death who retreats to a cabin on Puget Sound at the behest of his best friend (Emily Blunt).  When he finds Blunt’s sister (Rosemarie Dewitt) at the cabin, the two sleep together after a tequila fueled night, only to wake up and find that Blunt has decided to join them at the cabin.  Though the premise could easily devolve into a by-the-numbers romantic comedy, director Lynn Shelton looks to have crafted a thoughtful drama that plays out the scenario in the most human, and realistic, of fashions.  I’m a big fan of the cast here, and Matt enjoyed the film at Sundance, so I’m looking forward to checking it out.

Hit the jump to watch the trailer.  The film opens on June 15th.  If you missed them, you can also check out Steve’s interviews with Duplass and Dewitt at Sundance.

It’s remarkable how much you can class up a Jerry Springer-esque conflict if you cast its characters as thoughtful, funny, lovably flawed people.  Your Sister’s Sister takes a premise worthy of a “Jerry” chant and imbues it with warmth and compassion through charming performances by its lead cast.  However, the heavy reliance on dialogue to the expense of other cinematic elements leaves the film only as good as its conversation, and also makes the audience feel like voyeurs who are intruding on the characters’ personal lives.

In a bit of indie news, director Lynn Shelton (Humpday) has signed on to helm the dramedy Laggies. Written by Andrea Seigel, Laggies tells the story of a 28-year-old woman who is unable to cope with the pressures brought on by her boyfriend’s recent marriage proposal. In turn, she escapes into the comfort of adolescence by befriending a group of high schoolers.

Variety reports that casting on Laggies is set to begin in the near future, meaning that the project will likely take precedent over the adaptation of Joshua Ferris’ novel Then We Came to the End which Shelton is also attached to direct. Steve Golin, Alix Madigan, and Rosalie Swedlin will produce the pic for Anonymous Content. Shelton’s next film, My Sister’s Sister, will premiere at the upcoming Toronto International Film Festival. Emily Blunt, Rosemarie DeWitt, and Mark Duplass star in that pic.

We have two quick pieces of casting news for you this morning.  First up, David Tennant (Doctor Who) has joined the cast of the real-life soccer drama United.  The film, directed by James Strong, centers on “Manchester United’s Busby Babes, the youngest team to win the English soccer league before eight players died in the Munich air crash of 1958.”  According to Variety, Tennant will play the team’s coach, Jimmy Murphy.  Jack O’Connell (Skins) and Sam Claflin (Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides) will also star.  Filming is set to begin this month.

Hit the jump for more casting news.

Emily Blunt and Rachel Weisz will play sisters in an untitled, semi-improvised project from director Lynn Shelton (Humpday).  Deadline doesn’t have any details on what the film is about, but says that it’s only going to take a couple weeks to shoot and that’s how Weisz can fit it into her busy schedule.  Weisz is currently attached to Terrence Malick’s next film, a biopic of Jackie Kennedy, Terence Davies’ The Deep Blue Sea, and Fernando Meirelles’ for psychosexual drama 360.

Blunt’s also been keeping busy as she’s joined Rian Johnson’s upcoming sci-fi flick Looper with Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Bruce Willis, as well as the comedy Engagement Games, and the drama Salmon Fishing in Yemen.  Filming on Shelton’s picture begins later this month in Seattle.