Keira Knightley Confirmed For JACK RYAN And Kevin Costner Wanted Too

Keira Knightley has now been confirmed by Deadline for the female lead in the Jack Ryan reboot which stars Chris Pine (Star Trek 1-2) and directed by Kenneth Branagh (Thor, Hamlet). Kenneth will also be playing the film's villain with Kevin Costner also wanted for a key part. Kevin's role would also include his own spinoff franchise Without Remorse.

Which Actress Could Land The Lead In 'BLADE RUNNER 2' ?

Ridley Scott has confirmed that Blade Runner 2 is a sequel and it's lead will be female. The question now is who will end up taking that role? Noomi Rapace and even possibly Charlize Theron could be returning for a Prometheus sequel which will end up shooting before this film. It's likely that neither Noomi or Charlize will end up landing the lead, theres nothing to say they won't get supporting or villainous roles. A bunch of actresses tested for Prometheus but didn't land the role. I get the impression these ladies could end up in the running for female lead in Blade Runner 2.

NATALIE PORTMAN: The Oscar winning actress (Black Swan) was one the more high profiled actresses originally in the mix for the lead in Prometheus. Recently she was attached to science fiction films Jupiter Ascending (from The Wachowskis) and tested for Alfonso Cuarón's (Children of Men) Gravity. She's had commercial successes with the Star Wars prequel and now with the Thor franchise. Let's not forget her equally interesting genre credits in films like V For Vendetta, The Professional and Heat.

GEMMA ARTERTON: The British actress also caught the attention of Ridley during the casting process for Prometheus. The director was impressed with her performance in the thriller The Disappearance Of Alice Creed which led to a meeting and testing for the film. Arterton ultimately didn't get the role but is obviously on Ridley's radar now. Most of her supporting roles in films like Clash of The Titans, Quantum of Solace and Prince of Persia didn't seem to help her career. As those films were considered terrible or average at best. Yet, upcoming films like the vampire thriller Byzantium and the fairytale action/comedy Hansel And Gretel: Vampire Hunters should give her the boost she would need to complete for a role like this.

ANNE HATHAWAY: You might not consider this actress as someone who can handle action scenes but after The Dark Knight Rises that opinion will change. Anne has proven so far that she's a dedicated actor and can deliver strong performances which earned her an Oscar nomination (Rachel Getting Married) previously. She was also in the running for Prometheus but luckily ended up with the role of Selina Kyle/Catwoman instead. Depending on how her Catwoman role goes over with audiences expect her to be in the running for more action oriented projects.

CAREY MULLIGAN: Like Hathaway, Carey is a dedicated actress who has also earned her own Oscar nomination for An Education. She recently developed more of a cult following thanks in part to roles in last year's Drive and Shame. Her next film The Great Gatsby could end up a rather large Oscar contender if it's decent at all. Mulligan's lesser recognized role in the science fiction romantic drama Never Let Me Go had similar themes to Blade Runner. As the "borrowed time" and "manufactured people" aspects are shared in both films. While I can't see her as a hard boiled Blade Runner, an innocent replicant on the run seems like a more excellent casting idea.

KEIRA KNIGHTLEY: Knightley who co-starred with Mulligan in Never Let Me Go was rumored to be involved with the casting for Prometheus too. The actress has kept quiet mostly with her recent projects London Boulevard and the comedy Seeking A Friend For The End of The World. Compared to her previous work with blockbuster projects like Pirates of The Caribbean: The Curse of The Black Pearl, Pirates of The Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, Pirates of The Caribbean: World's End and King Arthur. In the couple of years she did test for Captain America and The Dark Knight Rises which means she's looking for the right big film to do. Meanwhile Keira takes on roles that help her stock as an actress with projects like Atonement, A Dangerous Method, The Duchess, Edge of Love and the upcoming Joe Wright film Anna Kendrick. The latter could end up earning her second Oscar nomination after Pride And Prejudice.

OLIVIA WILDE: Wilde has to be one of the most promising actresses working today. She's been mostly in small supporting roles for films like Tron Legacy and Cowboys And Aliens. Given the right part she could explode as she's gorgeous on screen with an energy/fast-paced delivery that could be perfect for this sci-fi noir action thriller. Olivia was also in the running for the lead in Prometheus.

WHO ALSO SHOULD BE CONSIDERED?

SCARLETT JOHANSSON: Her role in Avengers will likely boost her box office appeal to both domestic and international audiences. A fear that plagued the casting of Noomi Rapace in Prometheus because she wasn't a known actress at the time. Scarlett's also been jumping onto a lot of more dramatic roles with projects Hitchcock and Don Juan. Of course the young actress has the action backgrounded needed for the part as well with a massive amount of time dedicated for fight/stunt training for both Iron Man 2 and The Avengers. Johansson's upcoming film Under The Skin is an science fiction thriller which she plays an alien picking off humans. She was also in the running for Alfonso Cuarón's Gravity before Sandra Bullock was locked in. I personally think she could be rather convincing heroine in a science fiction film like this. You might also believe that she could kick your ass if need be, unlike most actresses who look like they could barely lift a weight.

Trailer For "Seeking A Friend For The End Of The World" Starring Steve Carell And Keira Knightley

Ken Watanabe Offered Role In Akira

Twitch reports that Gary Oldman has turned down the role of the Colonel in Akira. Oldman had also been offered the Merlin role in Arthur And Lancelot. The studio has now offered the part to another Christopher Nolan regular Ken Watanabe (Inception, Batman Begins, Last Samurai). Garrett Hedlund and Kristen Stweart have been linked for the leads.

What's interesting about this move by Warner Bros. is that Ken is the first Japanese actor to ever be linked the to the project. Akira has been getting a lot of hate from fans that the casting has been mostly whitewashing. This hopefully could be the first step to casting more Japanese actors in the film.

WB Still Searching For Akira's Tetsuo, More Actors Linked

I swear that Akira has to be one of the messiest casting searches I've seen since Captain America. The studio seems to be scrambling to find their Tetsuo before Akira starts production early next year. We've heard names like James McAvoy, Andrew Garfield, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Robert Pattinson and Ezra Miller (We Need To Talk About Kevin) previously all linked for the role but nothing has come of it. Currently Garrett Hedlund (Tron Legacy) is in place for role of Kaneda. Other actors such as Gary Oldman, Kristen Stewart, Keira Knightley and Helena Bonham Carter have been mentioned being in the mix as well.

HeatVision has word another batch of actors will screentest for the part of Tetsuo. The new list includes Tobey Kebbell (Wrath of The Titans, RockNRolla), Michael Pitt (Dreamers, Boardwalk Empire), Richard Madden (Game of Thrones), Rami Malek (The Pacific), Logan Marshall-Green (Prometheus), D.J. Controna (G.I. Joe 2) along with retests from Paul Dano (Cowboys And Aliens, There Will Be Blood) and Alden Ehrenreich. Out of this bunch I feel that Kebbell and Pitt have the best chances too pull off Tetsuo properly. While names like Malek and Madden shouldn't be overlooked as both are becoming excellent actors.

Kristen Stewart Could Play Kei In Akira

Warner Bros. has been having a really tough time nailing down it's male leads for their adaptation of Akira. Not much can be said for the few female roles as there haven't been too many names being mentioned. Now Twitch reports that Kristen Stewart is now in the mix for the role of female protagonist Kei. I'm still on the fence about Stewart in general with her terrible performances in Twilight but Huntsman could change my opinion.

A rumored offer has gone out to Helena Bonham Carter (Dark Shadows, Deathly Hollows, Fight Club) for the role of Lady and Keira Knightley (Pirates 1-3) had been linked for an unknown role. Garrett Hedlund (Tron Legacy, Troy) is up for the hero role of Kandea and Gary Oldman (Dark Kight) has been offered the role of the Colonel. While Ezra Miller (We Need To Talk About Kevin) and Alden Eherenreich are up for Tetsuo.

Ezra Miller & Alden Eherenreich Up For Tetsuo In Akira

HollywoodReporter says that Warner Bros. has two actors in mind to play Tetsuo in Akira. Previously there had been names mentioned like James McAvoy, Andrew Garfield, Robert Pattinson and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Yet, two new actors are testing for the role they are Ezra Miller and Alden Eherenreich. Both are relatively unknown but are gathering quite an amount of cinema geek-cred. Miller is currently getting rave reviews for his performance in the thriller We Need To Talk About Kevin. Alden is best known for working with Francis Ford Coppola (Godfather) in films like Tetro and Twixt. He was also in the running to play the new Peter Park in Marc Webb's The Amazing Spider-Man.

I think Ezra Miller might be the best of the two choices since his brooding Kevin is very similar to the latter stages of Tetsuo's descent into power-driven madness. Other names that have been circling the project include Garrett Hedlund, Gary Oldman, Helena Bonham Carter and Keira Knightley.

Four Possible Actors In The Running For Akira's Tetsuo

Now that Garrett Hedlund is likely taking the role of Kaneda in Akira there is the possibility we already know who might be up for the second lead of Tetsuo. Hedlund was apart of casting group for his part and there was a second smaller group testing for Tetsuo. That group included James McAvoy (Wanted, X-Men First Class), Andrew Garfield (Amazing Spider-Man, Social Network) and Robert Pattinson. Joseph Gordon-Levitt had been linked for the role when it was originally reported Warner Bros. was going to develop the project.

I wouldn't count Joseph out of the race until an actual name is attached. He's been quietly gathering steam at the studio starring in Christopher Nolan's Inception and The Dark Knight Rises. Not to mention working with DiCaprio (who is a producer) on two films including Quentin Tarantino's upcoming Django Unchained. James McAvoy might be a good fit but he has sequels on the horizon that include Wanted 2 and a X-Men First Class sequel. Andrew Garfield might have a little more leeway than James as he only has Amazing Spider-Man 2 coming up which might go into production until the first film's box office numbers come back. It's expected that Akira will be starting production soon. While I don't entirely count out Robert Pattinson he is going to turn off the male audiences who attribute him to the quality bankrupt Twilight franchise. Not a good idea since there is already enough hate on this project without terrible casting choices.

Keira Knightley Also Linked For Akira

HeatVision is confirming previous reports that both Gary Oldman (The Colonel) and Garrett Hedlund (Kaneda) are wanted by Warner Bros. for Akira. Twitch and HeatVision both report Helena Bonham Carter is involved, she's been rumored for Lady Miyako. There are still a bunch of large parts still up for grabs and a fourth actor is now in the mix.

Someone new mentioned is Keira Knightley who is likely in mind for the role of Kei. A revolutionary who ends up helping Kaneda when his friend and fellow biker gang member Tetsuo is mixed up with military medical experiments. Knightley is best known internationally for her role as Elizabeth Swan in the original Pirates of The Caribbean trilogy. She's been itching for a new blockbuster as she's been testing for films like The Dark Knight Rises and Captain America The First Avenger recently. Keira previously played a rough and fast-talking bounty hunter in Tony Scott's Domino, so she might fit well in this role.