A trio of actors have signed on for the psychological voodoo-themed thriller Vipka. Variety reports that Forest Whitaker, Anthony Mackie and Sanaa Lathan (AVP: Alien vs. Predator) are set to star in the genre flick. Philippe Caland (Ripple Effect) is directing, and the story “follows two adversaries who go head-to-head in a game that will test each man’s belief in what they’re certain is the truth.” While the logline’s a bit vague, we know voodoo’s in there somewhere, so expect Whitaker and Mackie to go all crazy.

Whitaker will next be seen in the crime drama Catch .44 with Bruce Willis, while Mackie just wrapped Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter and will move on to Ruben Fleischer’s all-star period cop drama Gangster Squad after shooting Vipka. Lathan stars in Steven Soderbergh’s Contagion which opens this fall.

We have a few bits of casting news for you this morning.  First up, veteran actor Philip Baker Hall (Magnolia) has joined Mark Waters’ (Mean Girls) family comedy Mr. Popper’s Penguins.  Hall joins Jim Carrey who will star in the title role as a man who inherits six penguins which eventually help teach him valuable life lessons.  Both Carla Gugino and Ophelia Lovibond were recently cast in the film as Mr. Popper’s wife and personal assistant respectively.  As for Hall, per TheWrap, he will play Franklin, “a deep-pocketed, no-nonsense investor who agrees to finance the Carrey’s wacky schemes.”  Penguins is currently in production in New York.  Hall plays alongside Ryan Gosling and Kirsten Dunst in the upcoming film  All Good Things.  In spite of his prevalent acting career, he’ll always be “Bookman” the Library cop from Seinfeld to me.

Hit the jump to read about Sanaa Lathan’s (Love & Basketball) new role in Steven Soderbergh’s Contagion.