This new clip from director Lee Daniels’ (Precious) upcoming movie, The Paperboy, highlights not only stars Zac Efron and Nicole Kidman, but Daniels’ editing style and a mighty fine musical choice.  It features the same washed-out tones as the previous clip we posted and I have to say, I’m a fan of the look.  However, the clip, titled “Jack’s Daydream,” is loaded with overlays, cuts and transitions that come across as a bit heavy handed.  Luckily, the scene is saved by David Oyelowo snapping Jack and the audience back into reality.  You’ll have to look twice to spot Matthew McConaughey who, in a bit of a departure, doesn’t steal the scene and barely registers on the radar.

The Paperboy, an adaptation of the Pete Dexter novel, features McConaughey and Efron playing a pair of brothers who team-up to investigate the potential wrongful conviction of a death-row inmate (John Cusack).  Hit the jump to check out the clip.

John Cusack has signed on to star in Oscar-nominated director Lee Daniels’ (Precious) adaptation of the 1995 Pete Dexter novel, The Paperboy. Cusack replaces Tobey Maguire who was forced to drop from the pic as a result of scheduling conflicts with The Great Gatsby. Zac Efron also stars in The Paperboy with both Nicole Kidman and Matthew McConaughey in “advanced negotiations” to join the project as well.

Dexter’s novel is set in Florida and centers on a pair of brothers who team-up to investigate the potential wrongful conviction of a death-row inmate. Per Variety, Cusack will play the prisoner in question. The thesp can next be seen in a pair of thrillers The Factory and The Raven which hit theaters on December 19th, 2011 and March 9th, 2012 respectively. For more on The Paperboy, hit the jump to check out a synopsis for Dexter’s novel.

Matthew McConaughey, Tobey Maguire, Sofia Vergara, and Zac Efron will star in the adaptation of the 1995 Pete Dexter novel The Paperboy for Precious director Lee Daniels.  The story is about the slacker son of a newspaper editor and publisher who gets caught up in a murder investigation with his older brother and (and this is from the official book description) Ward’s partner, “evil dandy Yardley Acheman.  I never thought four words could go together so perfectly.

THR reports that filmmaker “Pedro Almodovar (Talk to Her) developed the project for over a decade with Dexter before Daniels came on board.  As we reported in February, Daniels wanted Bradley Cooper, Alex Pettyfer, and Vergara so 1 out of 3 ain’t bad especially when you consider that the one you got is terrific and the other two are kind of bland.  McConaughey did some great work earlier this year with The Lincoln Lawyer, Maguire is always reliable, and I’m willing to give Efron a shot at weightier material.  Hit the jump for the synopsis of the book (which has nothing to do with the classic arcade game pictured above).

It looks like Precious director Lee Daniels has finally settled on his next project. Apparently he’s currently rewriting an adaptation of Pete Dexter’s novel The Paperboy. The book tells the story of the slacker son of a newspaper editor in Florida, who gets wrapped up in investigating a murder case. Vulture reports that Daniels already has his cast in mind and has sent out offers to Bradley Cooper, Sofia Vergara and Alex Pettyfer.

Daniels wants Cooper to play Pettyfer’s older brother, and is eyeing Vergara to play a death-row inmate’s wife. The cast isn’t locked in place, and given the presumed busy schedules of each of these in-demand actors it’s definitely not a foregone conclusion that they will sign on. Daniels has been flirting with a number of projects to follow up Precious, and it looks like he may finally have made a decision. Hit the jump for a synopsis of the book.