1.) Angelina Jolie is in negotiations to direct Unbroken, the story of Olympian-turned-WWII POW Louis Zamperini, for Universal Pictures. Jolie made her directorial debut with 2011’s largely unseen Bosnian war romance In the Land of Blood and Honey. Universal has been developing a film on Zamperini’s life for nearly 55 years, with William Nicholson (Gladiator, Les Miserables) delivering the latest draft of the script based on Seabiscuit author Laura Hillenbrand‘s 2010 book.
Zamperini was a track prodigy who ran in the 1936 Olympics, but missed his big chance at glory when the 1940 Olympics were cancelled because of WWII. He then joined the U.S. Air Force, and he and two other crew mates survived on a raft in the hot sun for 47 days after his aircraft went down in the Pacific during a rescue mission. Things only got worse when they were captured by the Japanese Navy. “I read Laura Hillenbrand’s brilliant book, and I was so moved by Louie Zamperini’s heroic story, I immediately began to fight for the opportunity to make this film,” Jolie said. It’s easy to see why. The story seems tailor made for cinematic storytelling, and with the film likely to go into production next year, Zamperini, who turns 96 in January, might finally get to see his story on the big screen. [Deadline]
2.) Another real-life character getting a lot of love in Hollywood these days is President Ronald Reagan. Alan Rickman plays him in Lee Daniels‘ The Butler and Michael Douglas will play him in Reykjavik, a film centering on the 1986 meeting between Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev (Christoph Waltz) that signaled the end of the Cold War. A third project now exists, simply called Reagan, and that one is circling Jon Voight to play a Soviet KGB agent assigned to keep tabs on Reagan during the Cold War. The character, Viktor, is actually a composite based on a number of KGB agents and Soviet analysts tracking the U.S. President. It sounds like the story is going to unfold in Forrest Gump or Benjamin Button-like fashion, as it begins when a young Russian leader pays the now-retired Viktor a visit so he may learn of the demise of the Soviet Union. [THR]
3.) This was probably a foregone conclusion, but Bryan Singer has formally confirmed the casting of Hugh Jackman in X-Men: Days of Future Past. No word on how big Jackman’s part will be, but I’m not expecting much screen time with an already massive ensemble. The film is scheduled for a July 2014 release.
4.) Martin Scorsese will direct an HBO documentary profiling President Bill Clinton. The film will be made with Clinton’s full blessing and participation, so I wouldn’t expect anything too critical or revealing. The film is expected to focus on his two terms as President, as well as his work after leaving the White House.
5.) I hadn’t even heard of The Incredible Burt Wonderstone until just now, but after looking at these photos of Steve Carell and Steve Buscemi as Las Vegas magicians with, well, interesting haircuts, I’m convinced I might have been better off staying that way. The film has some other big names as well, with Olivia Wilde, Alan Arkin, James Gandolfini and, yes, I believe that’s Jim Carrey sporting the long hair and goatee. He plays an up-and-coming street magician threatening to steal the audience of the Vegas mainstays played by Carell and Buscemi. [USA Today]
